The Sniper Project
by ShadowOfShadows
Summary: The Gundam Pilots are being injured...but is the most obvious person really the criminal? Surprising twists await...(Warnings: Shounen-ai 1+2, 3+4, language, violence) Story Complete.
1. Chapter 1

The Sniper Project   
By: Shadow~Of~Shadows   
Chapter Number: 1

  
  
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Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing, but I wish I did! Anyway, I don't claim to own anything I don't so you can't sue me =P   
  
Warnings: This story is slightly AU; the story continues as shown in the series until the end of EW, but at the end of EW the pilots don't destroy their Gundams...also, this story contains shounen-ai/yaoi, so if you don't like it, don't read it, and especially don't flame me, because I WARNED you! Other warnings will be provided to applicable chapters.   
  
Also...I love reviews! I read every review I get. I read constructive criticism and most of the time act on it (unless it's over something like my opinion). I dissect flames and put them on my website. So, be warned. This is also my first Gundam fic to be posted at this site, so...read and review, please. (Also, I'm sorry if this isn't very long; I hope for future chapters to be longer).   
  
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And here, it begins...   
  
--Safe House 023E   
  
Duo sat up.   
Normally this was no overly impressive feat for him; he fairly burst with vitality and energy.   
However, it WAS four AM. Considering the fact that he'd actually gone to bed at a decent hour, and not attempted to pull an all-nighter, that made a lot of difference.   
He glanced over at Heero, whom he shared a room with at this particular safe house, almost without thinking. The pale, Prussian-eyed pilot looked unusually peaceful asleep.   
Duo wondered why he wasn't awake. Heero was a lighter sleeper than Duo (he'd proven it, sometimes quite painfully, on several occasions) and whatever stimulus Duo had reacted to should have made Heero react as well.   
However, it hadn't. That pointed to something Heero couldn't see. Or hear. Or even feel.   
Shaking his head muddily, Duo managed to stay awake for all of three more minutes.   
Then, he fell back, and was asleep before he hit the sheets.   
  
  
--Elsewhere (Same time)   
  
The scientist looked at his newest 'project.' Created solely for laboratory use, she was really almost too pretty for menial laboratory duty.   
However, that same beauty made her perfect for the job he had in store for her.   
"So, you've planted AND activated the chip?" he asked her.   
She nodded, preferring movement to words, as usual.   
"Good. Now go and brainwash him. With HIM in our grasp we cannot lose. Not only will we have an inside link to a powerful force, but a hideously strong fighting machine as well!" he said, allowing himself a slight chuckle of success.   
The girl nodded again. With the special chip implanted in his body, Duo Maxwell would be unable to resist her.   
She stood.   
  
  
--Safe House 023E (A couple of hours later)   
  
Duo woke up bright and early the next morning. He yawned and glanced over at Heero's bed, pushing his bangs out of his eyes sleepily.   
The other pilot was already gone.   
A strange pain suddenly flashed through Duo's head as he thought a few rude--and probably wrong--thoughts. Duo shook his head and sighed as that pain floated through his brain again, hazily. He was probably with...Relena.   
Not that Duo had anything against the rather...clingy blonde girl...another strand of pain.   
What was he thinking? He wasn't jealous. Heero had no ties to him beyond friendship. And Duo certainly wasn't...gay...was he? He shook his head muddily, wondering where that pain had come from...   
Suddenly, and without explanation, he thought of the girl he'd met yesterday in town. It had only been for a split second, but she'd smiled at him as she brushed past. Later, he'd met up with her at a cafe and worked in some of his irresistible charm. They'd shaken hands and left, but he'd made plans to meet her again tomorrow.   
Perhaps the strangest thing had been her hair...instead of the normal colors...a dark brown, a black...maybe blonde, it was a striking silver color. Not the dimmed, diluted silver of hair that had lost all its pigment, but a shimmering, shining metal color in its own right. Mysterious hair.   
Duo shook off the last traces of sleepiness and with them faded memories of the girl. He didn't know why he'd thought of her so suddenly, still. Yawning, he pulled on his clothes and walked downstairs to grab something to eat.   
Surprisingly, when Duo reached the kitchen door, he found the other four pilots seated at the table. Quatre and Trowa had plates of toast and eggs, and a skillet in the sink, though cleanly washed and drained, spoke of Quatre's early morning efforts. Quatre's face was missing the warm smile that usually adorned it, even at this hour--Quatre was, inexplicably, almost always a cheerful person, no matter the hour of day or night.   
And that was just the odd thing. Quatre hadn't smiled--cracked a joke--even acted CHEERFUL since they'd gotten back from town yesterday. Despite several attempts to cheer him up, the boy appeared to be either lost in thought, or gravely considering something. It was just too odd.   
Across from the blonde boy, Trowa pushed his eggs and toast around his plate aimlessly. He snuck glances at the blonde boy occasionally, careful to keep them secret. He was, in truth, worried about his blonde friend. He'd never seen Quatre this grave for this long before...not since the wars, anyway.   
Next at the table were Wufei and Heero. They had similar bowls of rice and similar chopsticks--credit to their Asian heritage. Even if Heero didn't exactly look Japanese, he managed to have a bowl of rice now and then or secretly flaunt his prowess with chopsticks (or so he thought) at Asian restaurants. Wufei was simply eating his rice as he usually did, not too fast, not too slow, somewhere in the middle, a good eating pace. Wufei complained about slow eaters and he smirked when people ate too fast and got a stomachache. That was just the way he was.   
Duo put on a half-assed smile just as an enormous, jaw-cracking yawn burst from his lips. "Yo!" he said as cheerfully as he could manage and stumbled over to a cupboard, pulling out a bowl and a box of cereal. He got milk from the refrigerator and hastily poured out the cereal. He reached into the silverware drawer to grab a spoon, but somehow ended up with one of the sporks he'd brought back from some cheap fast-food restaurant they'd eaten at. Not even noticing, he stumbled over and sat down across from Wufei, beginning to eat his cereal. With a spork.   
After a few sporkfuls of cereal, Duo realized something was wrong with his eating utensil. He held it up, squinting, and Wufei snorted.   
"Maxwell, you baka." he said. "It's just like you to not realize exactly WHAT you're eating with until you've already eaten half of your food," he said imperiously.   
"Well, I don't see how you and Heero eat with THOSE things..." Duo retaliated. "If I was given a pair of those, I'd probably either tie a fork to the end of one or sharpen the end and stab my food."   
Wufei gave Duo a reproving glance and went back to eating his rice, neatly and accurately. Duo snorted and went back to eating his cereal. With the spork.   
Heero looked across the table diagonally at the violet-eyed boy, still eating his rice at a steady pace, slightly quicker than Wufei, however. He watched as Duo scooped up a spoonful of the cereal and attempted to eat it, most of the milk spilling out through the 'tines' of the spork and the baka stabbing himself in the tongue as he bit down. The boy was, well, there was no other word for it. Adorable. Not so long ago, Heero would have labeled him as a baka and practically thrown a spoon at his head, forcing him to eat correctly. However, he let the boy carry on in uncharacteristic silence, both making a mess and hurting himself by intervals, both of which were harshly accepted by the Chinese pilot seated across from him, who continued to tag him as a baka.   
Heero struggled against feelings that Dr. J had buried so well, so ... completely? No, not completely or he wouldn't be feeling them now. Studiously tucking more rice into his mouth, he thought back to the past. He'd been practically tortured every day. His very parents had been tagged as evil, not that he could remember them. Love was an enemy; it made the soldier weak. A soldier did not need love, did not need to give love. However, Duo's eternally cheerful personality had finally broken through Heero's hard shell, and Heero had made his first friend. The others had become friends as well, but Heero had always felt a closeness, some sort of attachment about Duo he hadn't been able to describe and was too prideful to talk about.   
He only wished that he could tell Duo his true feelings, but he was skeptical of what the braided boy would say. It was quite obvious Duo preferred girls, or was it? Some of the glances that Duo shot Heero were downright...strange. Heero, definitely NOT being the world's expert on emotions, couldn't decipher them. He held back from the simple fear that if he told his friend how he really felt, he might lose him. And he didn't want to lose Duo. Because that, as sure as anything, would bury those feelings again. And this time, nothing would be left to mark where they were; they'd be six feet deep and gone for good. And with that chain of thought, Heero went back to eating his rice.   
  
  
--Nearby Town (Later in the day)   
  
All the Gundam Pilots had gone off in different directions. Heero had looked as if, rather, he'd like to go with Duo. However, Relena had appeared and was tugging him away.   
Duo stared at their backs, a look of unabashed longing on his face.   
Relena really didn't know just how lucky she was. Once again, his head whipped with pain. He shook it off, threw his thoughts of Heero to the wind and looked around for the girl he'd met the other day. She wasn't hard to find.   
He saw her silvery hair shining in the wind on a corner and she waved to him. He waved back, then walked over to her and said hello. They then walked to a small outdoor cafe to continue their talk.   
  
  
--Different Area of Same Town (A couple of hours later)   
  
Quatre frowned. He'd been looking around in a music shop for a couple of hours, and not only was it starting to get dark, but one of his friends was nervous...it was barely registering, but he could still feel it.   
The bell above the door jingled. Quatre looked up from the display of violin solos and duets he had been examining in time to see Trowa step into the shop.   
Trowa looked around the store at the highly polished instruments and collections of music, and nodded when the owner called out a greeting. He then spied Quatre near the violin music section and barely managed to hide his happiness. He walked over to the smaller boy.   
"What are you looking at?" he questioned quietly.   
"Solos and duets..." Quatre said, rubbing his forehead. That nervousness was much stronger now, and laced through with a dim panic and an edge of raw fear...   
Trowa looked at his friend. "What's wrong? Why're you--"   
He didn't get any further. Quatre gasped at that moment and clutched at his chest, mumbling two words as his eyes widened and a pain swept through his body. "Duo...pain..."   
Trowa's eyes widened in shock. Quatre was trembling and looked like he was going to pass out. Worried for his friend, Trowa shook him gently, but it didn't have any effect. Just then Quatre's eyes rolled up in his head and he started to drop. Hoping that he'd forgive him later, he caught the blonde boy and gently cradled him in his arms. He was surprised at just how little the boy weighed.   
He easily carried him to the front of the shop, where the owner inquired what was going on and if there was anything she could do. Trowa replied politely, saying it happened sometimes and getting him home would be the best thing. The owner nodded assent, though hesitantly, and Trowa walked out of the shop.   
Wufei was in the shop across the street, and happened to look up and through a window just as soon as Trowa came out of the music shop carrying Quatre. The Chinese boy's eyes widened in shock and he mumbled a curse under his breath, fumbling as he paid for his purchase. He finished paying and ran out of the store and across to Trowa.   
"Is he okay?" Wufei asked.   
"I hope he will be...he said Duo was in pain, then blacked out." Trowa said, trying to conceal the worry in his voice.   
Wufei snarled. "We'd better find that baka then and see what he's gotten himself into THIS time!" he snapped, running off down the street.   
Trowa followed, slower, so as not to disturb Quatre. Just then the blonde boy started to stir a bit. Trowa looked down at him just as he opened his eyes.   
Those eyes...! Beautiful...depthless...ocean colored...there was pain flickering in their depths, and on the surface floated quick shock, then wonderment and gratitude. Trowa was barely able to control his emotions as he stared into Quatre's eyes. That gaze might be beautiful, but it had a soul-searching quality.   
Quatre smiled up at his friend, able to feel his distress. "Trowa...don't try to hide your emotions. It only leads to pain later on," he advised.   
Trowa seemed to struggle with himself for a few seconds, then the mask dropped. "Quatre..." Trowa said quietly, concern filtering into that pure emerald gaze that hadn't seen such emotion in so long conveyed through it...a voice unused to speaking in anything beyond a monotone struggled to properly emphasize words...he'd had so little practice...he'd shown emotions a few times since he'd met the others, and admittedly, it became easier over time, but it was still difficult...   
Quatre was astonished to see this. His friend had made an honest effort and while his emotions, portrayed such as this, might be classed as clumsy at best, they were beautiful to the smaller boy. Because Trowa had done it...for him. He blushed slightly but managed to control it, glad for the half darkness, and spoke.   
"I'm okay, Trowa...don't worry...but..oh! Duo! Where's Duo? He was in such pain!" Quatre said in a pained voice...he wondered where his friend was, and how he could have forgotten about him.   
The comforting look on Trowa's face, though not the best, was beautiful and priceless to Quatre. "Don't worry about it...Wufei's gone to find him and we're following." Trowa told him.   
Quatre seemed to think for a moment, trying to process all the information. "Hmm...okay." he finally managed.   
  
  
--Nearby, same town (same time)   
  
Heero had finally lost Relena and was walking back to the place that all the pilots had agreed to meet at, when Wufei came barreling towards him, shouting Chinese war curses and not caring exactly who he ran into. Heero, startled slightly, stepped back. Few things could make Wufei react like that. He ran after the Chinese boy, gun drawn, as soon as he passed.   
He slammed into Wufei when he stopped, but managed to not fall backwards. Heero looked up at Wufei as the boy looked back at him. His face was pale, unsmiling...and...worried.   
"Wufei...what's wrong?" Heero asked. Wufei merely turned and pointed to something in front of him. Heero leapt nimbly to his feet and looked where Wufei was pointing.   
His gaze traveled to Duo...a crowd was forming...Duo...Duo was lying there...   
Duo was lying there...in a pool of his own blood...unconsious...bullet wounds...it all ran through Heero's mind...the baka had given things away...he had gotten himself shot...he tried to analyze how large a chance Duo had of surviving but thoughts milled in his head until he nearly screamed with the pressure...and he could control his facade no longer...   
"No...Duo! DUO!" he didn't realize the pained shout as his own, didn't realize he'd moved until he was kneeling beside Duo, the blood soaking into the knees of his jeans as he stared at the other pilot.   
He didn't see the look of alarm and dawning recognition on Wufei's face...   
  
  
--Hospital (a couple of days later)   
  
Heero was pacing.   
Wufei looked up at the Japanese pilot. Heero hadn't slept, hadn't eaten, since they'd brought Duo here...they'd barely persuaded him to take baths and change clothes, he was so agitated. Such behavior was un-Heerolike, and none of the pilots could explain it.   
Wufei yawned, and looked to his side. Trowa was sitting next to him in some of the uncomfortable hospital chairs, and Quatre on his other side. Quatre was asleep, his face mercifully clean of pain and fear, two emotions that had claimed him almost straight for the past two days.   
Trowa glanced sideways at the blonde boy...he was slipping...slipped...his head came to rest on Trowa's shoulder. Trowa let it rest there, and didn't seem to mind when Quatre grabbed his nearest arm in his sleep.   
Just then the door into the room where their friend had been taken opened. Quatre was instantly awake. The doctor stepped out, closed the door, then turned around to find four boys staring intently at him. He cleared his throat.   
"As you know...your friend had two bullet wounds in his chest. We also discovered internal bleeding...in his brain," the doctor said slowly, trying to phrase everything out in an unthreatening way.   
Quatre's grip on Trowa's arm tightened. No! Duo can't be dead!   
"Fortunately..." the doctor began again, clearing his throat, "We were able to save him. We didn't even have to cut his hair, due to a few new techniques we've discovered in the past few years," the doctor said, smiling, remembering how the boy had unconsciously clutched the long, thick rope of hair to his chest whenever he could.   
"Miraculously, the brain was unharmed. Somehow, it almost looks like the brain was..well, just sort of sweating blood...that's the best way I can think to describe it...there were no tears...no punctures...you get the picture. We just drained out the excess blood, and, well, he's okay now. We've still got him heavily sedated...the chest surgery went perfectly, by the way. We also removed a strange object from his brain...it appears to be some sort of computer chip."   
Alarm bells went off in Heero's mind. "Do you still have it?"   
"Yes, we do."   
"I will ask you to give that chip to me for further analysis." Heero practically ordered. The doctor looked taken aback, then said, "Certainly, I suppose."   
Silence hung on the air for a long moment, then, surprisingly, Heero cleared his throat and asked the question that hovered on every pair of lips.   
"Can we visit him?"   
The doctor nodded. "Of course--he's unconscious...I mentioned we had him sedated..."   
"You did, but I would like to see him anyway." Heero said forcefully.   
"We all would," Quatre added, to take the sting out of the statement.   
"Fine." The doctor said. "One at a time."   
Heero looked at the others. "I'll go last."   
Wufei blinked. "I'll go first...and...see the baka, get it over with," he said, trying to hide his obvious pleasure that his friend was okay by sounding gruff. It didn't work. The other three pilots smiled weakly.   
Wufei muttered something and walked into the room. He looked down at Duo, covered in monitors, electrodes, strange tubes...the boy didn't look the same as his normal, bouncy self...Wufei's breath caught in his throat against his will.   
He sat down in a chair and recited several Chinese poems from memory before leaving. He didn't notice the slight flutter in Duo's brainwaves when he did so.   
Trowa was next. He looked at the boy for a moment, then cleared his throat and told Duo that he'd been taking care of Deathscythe for him, using Duo's nickname for his Gundam, Shinigami. He thought it might help the boy. Unbeknownst to him, it did. He left, and Quatre walked in.   
Quatre cheerfully chattered with Duo. He talked about several different things, and he could have sworn Duo stirred once or twice. None of the pilots knew, of course, that Duo was near the end of his sedation period, and that their concern was bringing him back from the unconsciousness he was caught in.   
Heero was the last in. He sat down, looking away from Duo for a few seconds, then back at the boy. He cleared his throat, then took one of Duo's hands, careful not to disturb the IV drip going into Duo's wrist.   
"Duo...I wish I could tell you everything..." he said. "But I've seen you with girls...it's not fear to tell you, but I just don't think I'd be able to act on it...and neither would you. It'd end up hurting both of us. I don't want to hurt you because you were the first real friend I made and I don't want to lose that friendship. But...I have to tell you anyway, and this seems the perfect time..."   
Duo suddenly stirred. Heero gazed at the other pilot. He'd better make this quick.   
"Duo, I've loved you for a long time. I can't stop it. I can't contain it. I know you may not love me back but I have to tell you anyway...I love you, Duo."   
Heero quickly replaced Duo's hand on the blankets and walked out, blissfully unaware that Duo had heard the last four words he'd said and ran them over in his mind a hundred thousand times...   
  
To Be Continued...   
  
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Thanks for reading, please review if you've got the time! 


	2. 

The Sniper Project   
By: Shadow~Of~Shadows   
Chapter Number: 2   
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Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing. I sure wish I did sometimes but I don't!   
  
Warnings: Same as Chapter 1: Shounen-ai, and they didn't destroy their Gundams at the end of EW. This chapter also contains some reference to religion.   
  
Author's Notes: Hope you like this chapter! Remember, I read every review, but flames get dissected/posted at my site.   
  


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From here, it continues...

  
  
--Duo's Hospital Room (A few days later)   
  
It was a dreary, rainy day outside. Duo glanced out through the windows of his hospital room. He'd been moved from the intensive care ward to a more normal hospital room and was recovering rapidly. The boy's strong will had helped him pull through his injuries, and his friends helped too.   
  
The aforementioned friends were taking shifts watching over him; he was comforted by their presence, but insisted he was fine, and that they didn't have to watch him every single minute. However, he didn't know just how serious his injuries had been--or just how thankful his friends were that he was still alive to tell his tale.   
  
On this particular rainy day, it was lunchtime. It also just happened to be Quatre's shift. Quatre was eating some sort of salad, claiming to not be very hungry. Duo was picking around in his standard institutionalized fare--spaghetti in a weak sauce with a few 'meatballs' that were probably not meat at all, along with a small, wilted salad. [1] He looked at Quatre's salad again...it was a taco salad...he'd probably gotten it from that little Mexican fast food place down the street...Duo's mouth watered. Taco meat...sour cream...avocados...he managed to think some sense back into his starved-for-junk food brain and picked up another forkful of the spaghetti, watching as it slid limply off his fork and down back to the tray.   
  
"This isn't faiiir!" he finally whined, some of his good humor showing through as Quatre looked over and Duo provided him with a lopsided grin. "You get good fast food and I have to eat..." Duo paused significantly, holding up his fork again and letting the spaghetti slide off, "This,"   
  
Quatre couldn't contain a giggle, then a burst of laughter as Duo stared at him hurtfully. Quatre managed to control himself and giggled again slightly. "Sorry. Trowa just wanted for me to eat something more substantial than the cafeteria food here...he told me himself, 'That food isn't that good. It may have the proper nutritional values but you'd probably not eat half of it. Therefore, I think it's better that you have something tasty that's not quite as nutritious, but you WILL eat.' He practically forced this salad on me!" Quatre stated, with an amused look in his eyes. "Trowa might not be the world's greatest conversationalist, but when it comes to something he's concerned about, he can be quite a talker,"   
  
Duo couldn't suppress a smirk. "So Trowa's watching out for you now?" he said.   
  
Quatre noted the somewhat bitter tone in the American pilot's words and looked across at him. "Don't worry, Duo, we all look out for each other. Trowa's just been a bit more concerned than usual ever since I passed out in that music shop I told you about,"   
  
Duo nodded; he'd heard all about the music shop. Quatre had evidently passed out when he'd been shot. Duo could understand Trowa's concern, somehow...he saw how close those two really were even if they didn't realize it--or just didn't admit it to themselves.   
  
"Yeah, well, I don't think anyone really cares about me just exactly the way Trowa cares about you...I dreamed that _he_ did but--" Duo froze, realizing what he'd just said, and, blushing, he stuffed his mouth full of spaghetti so that any questions would be forestalled.   
  
Quatre froze as well, his fork halfway to his mouth. "Duo...are you saying..." Quatre suddenly gasped, realizing what his friend was saying. He'd heard the story from Wufei, who'd been there...   
  
"Do you mean you wish Heero cared about you the way Trowa cares about me?"   
  
Duo froze, nearly choking, and barely managed to swallow. He turned his head away from the blonde pilot, staring at a wall. He muttered something unintelligible.   
  
"Excuse me?" Quatre asked.   
  
"Nothing." Duo said sharply.   
  
Quatre's expression became somewhat stern. "Tell me what you said. I bet I can help."   
  
Duo muddled through his thoughts and finally sighed. "A few days ago...when I was still out...just before I woke up, I could have sworn I heard you guys talking to me..."   
  
Quatre blinked. A few days ago, they had talked to their friend, but the doctor had said he was sedated. Jerking his mind back to the present, Quatre nodded slowly. "And?"   
  
"And...and..." Duo paused to think. "First I heard Wufei reading something in Chinese...it was rhythmic..it was...really soothing, actually." Duo said with a half-grin. "I never knew Wu-man could do something so calming."   
  
Quatre nearly snorted with laughter, not telling Duo the way Wufei had actually found his book of Chinese poetry and gone to the trouble of reading a few for the other pilots while they were waiting to see if Duo would live. The poems had, indeed, had a calming effect on the others--perhaps Wufei had seen this and had done the same for Duo.   
  
"Then, I heard Trowa talking about Shinigami..." Duo smiled. "Or at least dreamed I did. He was talking about how when you and him had gone back to the safe house to check over things he'd found a black cat sitting on one of the shoulders and rescued it.   
  
Quatre nearly gasped but restrained himself. It was true, they'd found a black cat sitting on the shoulder of Duo's Gundam, and Trowa had managed to rescue it. The taller pilot's knack with animals had proved extremely useful in rescuing the cat, which was little more than a kitten.   
  
"Then, I thought I heard you talking. You were talking about all of you had gone to eat at that fast-food place down the street and how Heero had gotten angry at a burrito and managed to cover the entire tabletop in beans and picante sauce before you three managed to get him calmed down." Duo laughed quietly. "I would have loved to see that,"   
  
Despite himself, Quatre broke into the conversation. "It was awfully funny," he admitted, "He shouted 'Omae o korosu' at it and even threatened to shoot it before Trowa managed to restrain him. The management wasn't very happy though,"   
  
Duo actually laughed, the sound echoing around the hospital room. Duo wiped his eyes after he'd laughed, as a few tears had leaked out. He was still a bit weakened from his ordeal. "I can just see that happening...well, anyway, next up, I thought I heard Heero...and..."   
  
Here Duo paused. He looked down at the blankets and ran the fingertips of his left hand over his right one.   
  
"I...I dreamed that he picked up my hand...and told me some things...and at the end, he told me he loved me." Duo said. Shaking slightly, Duo turned back to Quatre. "I think it was all an act...because...he's been kind of sharp towards me, when he's on 'duty'...every time I try to talk about it he either changes the subject, or leaves..."   
  
Quatre had been shaking his head from the moment Duo said 'act' and now leaned across the bed to grab the braided boy's hand. "Duo, he'd never say anything that serious and not mean it. Also...if you can remember about the burrito, you obviously heard correctly,"   
  
Duo shook his head slightly, a tear tracking down his cheek. "I just don't know what to believe anymore!"   
  
Quatre gently gave the other boy a hug, careful to not upset his IV. He then sat back down in his chair. "Duo, never doubt yourself. Confront Heero about it sometime,"   
  
Duo nodded, and just then a knock sounded on the door. Quatre looked at the door. "That must be one of the guys, ready to take over for me," he said. He picked up his salad and walked to the door, opening it...   
  
..and he faced...Heero.   
  
"I'm here to watch over Duo now." Heero said. Quatre took a step back and looked sideways at Duo, who was looking straight ahead, determined.   
  
"Okay, Heero. I'll see you later." Quatre told the Japanese pilot, then ducked out of the room.   
  
"Hn." Heero said, then walked into the room and closed the door.   
  
  
--Elsewhere (Same time)   
  
The girl had just gotten back from her mission. Unfortunately, she'd been unable to seduce the boy...and there had been...complications. She heard shouting and the crunching and snapping of glass...her boss was angry. She steeled herself before stepping into the room.   
  
Instantly a beaker was thrown at her, and shattered on the wall behind her as she ducked. She stood again and ducked once more as a rack of test tubes was thrown at her. She kept ducking and dodging, but soon found herself face-to-face with the scientist.   
  
"You FOOL!" he screamed in her face. "Not only could you not bring him over to OUR side, but failing to do so, you didn't properly KILL him either!"   
  
Her eyes widened. Kill...? She'd never made a move to kill the boy...   
  
"You shot him twice, in the chest, and yet managed to miss vital organs both times!" the scientist said, seething.   
  
She shook her head. She'd never shot him. She said so. It was the wrong thing to say.   
  
"YOU WHAT?!" he screamed. She ran from the room, but was captured as he turned on the forcefield around the door. "NOT SO FAST!"   
  
She froze. She was trapped...   
  
"Listen, my little _pet..._" he snarled, slurring the word hatefully. "You are to go after 05 next. Chang Wufei. Do you understand me?"   
  
"I understand," she assured him, standing. He knocked her back off her feet.   
  
"Not so fast. You're going to be punished now," he said, with an evil grin. She glared, but knew that she couldn't stop what was coming. It was amazing how much she hated that one little fact.   
  
  
--Duo's Hospital Room (Same time)   
  
Heero stepped into Duo's room and closed the door behind him. He then walked over to the chair Quatre had been sitting in and sat down, looking at Duo and his abandoned lunch tray. His gaze traveled over the barely touched spaghetti and not-so-meatballs, then to the untouched and wilted salad and the glass of watery iced tea.   
  
"Baka...aren't you going to eat your lunch? You need to eat something to keep up your strength." Heero said.   
  
"I can't eat this...this shit!" Duo said, with a snarl. Heero sat back, his eyes widening. That was an odd start. He figured Duo would crack some sort of joke.   
  
"Why...what's wrong with it?" Heero inquired.   
  
"The spaghetti sucks ass. Meatless meatballs. Salad is so limp it's slimy. Tea's watered down so it's nearly water and there's no sugar in it." Duo stated coldly. Heero blinked again. This was unlike the braided boy...   
  
"Well...I've got this..." Heero said. He opened the pack he'd taken to carrying with him and pulled out a sandwich and some chips and a bottle of soda that Trowa had insisted he take along with him. Heero was just going to throw it in the garbage, but it looked like Duo could use it.   
  
Duo's eyes widened and he drooled. "Cheetos! A ham sandwich! With CHEESE! Real cheese! And SODA! Sugar-filled caffeinated beverage!" Duo exulted. Heero rolled his eyes. This was the Duo he remembered.   
  
Suddenly Duo stopped. He just realized something. "But...Heero...isn't this supposed to be YOUR lunch? Or...maybe dinner?" he said, thinking maybe Heero had already eaten his lunch.   
  
Heero shook his head. "No. It was supposed to be my lunch but I'm not going to eat."   
  
Duo's jaw dropped. "Come ON, Heero, you HAVE to eat!"   
  
Heero glared. "I don't have to, I haven't for the last two days!" he suddenly realized he'd told Duo something he hadn't wanted to reveal and he groaned, throwing a hand across his face. He called himself a baka...ten times...a hundred times...   
  
"Heero...is it because...of me?" Duo asked quietly. Heero froze. He lowered his hand and looked at the American pilot.   
  
"Do you want the truth?" he asked him.   
  
Duo nodded hesitantly.   
  
"Yes." Heero asked.   
  
"Heero...why?" Duo asked his friend.   
  
Heero shook his head, his eyes flashing fire. He leapt up from his chair and went to stand next to the window. "I don't know why! I just can't stomach food for some reason...I guess it's because every time I eat I somehow remember how close you came to...to..." Heero stopped. He looked down out the window at various people getting in and out of cars, at Ambulances filing in, at children going to see grandparents or new baby siblings, dressed in raincoats, at the rain filtering down through the clouds...   
  
"To...dying?" Duo finished the statement from behind him.   
  
Heero whirled. His voice was low...grating...and ominous. "Don't mention it." he told Duo. "I don't want to think about it!" he whirled again, trying to disguise the odd note in his voice by turning quickly. He cursed himself. Soldiers were strong, soldiers did not feel emotions. Emotions made for weak soldiers, and soldiers must be strong. Therefore, a true soldier does not need emotion...   
  
However many times he repeated his motto, it wasn't the truth, and he knew it, somewhere deep down. He suddenly realized tears were dripping from his eyes and he snarled, the snarl broken by the odd tone that had snuck into his voice earlier and coming out as half-snarl, half-sob. Duo started. He'd heard sobs like that before, from young children at the orphanage that were crying...he could still remember Sister Helen's words...'Don't cry...the Lord is always there for you...you can lean on Him when you feel sad...He is our protector...'   
  
"Heero...Heero!" Duo said, trying to get his friend to turn. Heero half-turned, and Duo could see, that, indeed, Heero had been crying.   
  
"Heero...you can lean on me."   
  
Heero's eyes widened in shock, and he appeared to be fighting with himself. Suddenly he straightened, and walked over to Duo, throwing his arms around the boy, but being careful in the process, Duo noticed. Duo put his arms around Heero and tried to calm him down.   
  
"Heero...don't worry..."   
  
"Duo...all these...emotions...I don't...understand them..." Heero looked up at Duo, his eyes bright from the tears. "Please...don't think I'm weak..."   
  
"I don't think you're weak, Heero..." Duo promised him. Heero lowered his gaze again, tears dripping from his eyes, but making no sound. Duo whispered, "It's okay to cry, Heero. It's okay to feel emotions. Sometimes those that don't cry, those that don't feel emotion, are the truly weak,"   
  
Heero listened, and actually sobbed, hugging Duo even harder. Duo hugged him back, feeling that he was getting through to his friend, and that this would be a healing process for both of them.   
  
  
--Gundam Hangar @ Safe House 023E (Same day, a little bit later.)   
  
Wufei was sitting on top of Nataku, meditating. He felt...calm. The rain always had a soothing effect on him. He sighed, deeply inhaling the scents...the metallic tang of Gundanium, the slightly acidic scent of some spilled fuel (it had been Duo's doing), and from outside, as the door opened, a delicious fragrance of clean water and fresh plants. It all swirled together to complete the picture made of scent...the picture of life.   
  
Wufei shook his head. Perhaps he was getting a bit TOO far into meditation...he looked down, and saw that, indeed, the door had been opened, by Quatre. The small blonde boy walked over to his Gundam, his salad in his hands, and sat down next to Sandrock, stabbing some lettuce with a fork and transferring it to his mouth even as an almost inaudible sigh escaped from his lips.   
  
Wufei leapt nimbly down from on top of Nataku, walking over to Quatre. "So you're back already."   
  
Quatre seemed startled at the noise, but, seeing as it was Wufei, relaxed. He nodded, and swallowed. "Yes, Heero was there when I left,"   
  
Wufei nodded and sat down opposite the Arabian, on one of Heavyarms' feet. "How did it go?"   
  
"Well, I think..." Quatre replied, absentmindedly taking another bite of salad. "He seems to be improving...you know, that day we talked to him unconscious? He remembers what we told him..."   
  
Wufei blinked. That was new. Duo hadn't mentioned the Chinese poetry any time that Wufei had been there. Wufei wasn't sure that he'd wanted him to. He'd never revealed his past...about the death of his wife, Meiran...how he'd originally wanted to be a scholar...   
  
The book of Chinese poetry he'd chosen those poems from had been a wedding present, in fact...his heart still twisted at the thought of if. He looked across at Quatre and noticed that the other boy was staring at him.   
  
"What?" Wufei asked.   
  
"You...you were in pain just now...not physical pain...but..." Quatre looked at the Chinese boy. "Is there anything you'd like to talk about?"   
  
"No, not really." Wufei lied.   
  
"You're lying." Quatre said.   
  
Wufei turned his gaze to Heavyarms, then looked back at Quatre. "I'll talk about it when I want."   
  
Quatre frowned slightly. "Wufei..."   
  
"No. I'll probably pick you to tell it to but give me more time." Wufei said, walking off towards the safe house.   
  
Quatre sighed.   
  
  
--Safe House 023E (Same time)   
  
Trowa sighed and sat down at the desk in the room he shared with Quatre. The rain outside pounded on the window, creating a soothing melody. Trowa pulled out a piece of paper and a pencil and began to draw.   
  
It wasn't a talent he told anybody about...he kept it well hidden. Nobody knew. None of the other pilots...not even Quatre.   
  
He sketched out the main body of a Gundam. He hadn't decided which Gundam it was going to be, because all of the Gundams had some similarity in body structure, but settled the matter by adding on a jagged pair of bats-wings...an active cloak. He drew in the beam scythe, the hyper jammers...everything. He looked at the drawing for a second, then crumpled it up and tore it into little pieces, putting them in the trash can.   
  
"Shinigami means nothing, is nothing without its pilot." He heard himself say, before he sighed and went downstairs to see if Quatre was back yet.   
  
  
--Safe House 023E (A few hours later)   
  
Wufei walked into the safe house, and into the kitchen, where Trowa and Quatre were cooking dinner. Steaks. Wufei wasn't used to steak cooked that way, exactly, but it still smelled delicious. He turned to Trowa.   
  
"Trowa, it's time for someone else to go take a shift of looking after Duo," he looked at the steaks as he said this. "Don't worry about cooking dinner for me, I'll pick something up on my way there,"   
  
Trowa nodded. "Okay then. See you later, Wufei,"   
  
Wufei nodded and walked out to the garage.   
  
  
--Road to town (A couple of minutes later)   
  
Wufei had only been driving for a few minutes when he heard a strange sound, despite the rain. It was starting to get dark outside, and he squinted around for a few seconds. He didn't know what was going on, exactly, but he had a feeling of unease.   
  
The car handled the roads perfectly, and after piloting Nataku for so long, Wufei could probably drive the thing blindfolded if he needed to. It gave him plenty of chance to look around...   
  
...and he never saw the 4x4 truck plowing out of the underbrush on the side of the road, only felt the impact as he was thrown. His last thought, before he blacked out, was that he'd been ambushed, as he watched the truck drive away, and he looked down at his body, promptly fainting.   
  
  
--Safe House 023E (Same time)   
  
Quatre sat straight up in his chair, his eyes getting huge. "Trowa!"   
  
Trowa was immediately at his side. "Quatre?!"   
  
"Trowa! It's Wufei! Wufei's been hurt...Trowa..." Quatre said. The small boy fainted again, slumping in his chair.   
  
Trowa cursed. He picked up the smaller boy and ran out to the garage. There was no time to waste. He dialed an ambulance from his cell phone even as he took the alternative vehicle, a black offroad truck, much like the one that had ambushed Wufei, out of the garage, putting Quatre gently in the passenger's side seat and driving away into the night.   
  
  
--Duo's Hospital Room (Shortly after)   
  
Heero knew something was wrong as soon as he heard the ambulance sirens. He'd spent the past hours talking to Duo. It had been hard at first but it had gotten easier and easier. He immediately jumped up and ran over to the window.   
  
"Heero...it's probably not anyone we know..." Duo said.   
  
Heero turned back to the other pilot, even as they heard the sound of orderlies shouting and yelling orders in the corridor outside. "Duo. It's...it's Wufei,"   
  
"What?!" Duo shouted. Just then the door opened, and from the corridor outside they could hear a rush of conversation. "...wreck! Serious injuries! We're talking bad here! Get this boy in the ER, STAT!"   
  
The doctor poked his head in. "I'm afraid your friend has been badly injured. We're doing all we can, but we don't want to leave you in the dark. He was apparently driving his way here when another vehicle collided with his. It was obviously a hit and run because there were no other vehicles in or near the crash site. Anyway, his vehicle rolled several times and he was thrown. Both of his legs and one of his arms are broken, there's internal bleeding and almost definitely a concussion. We're doing everything we can, but if you believe in God, pray for this boy," he said, then turned and left.   
  
All through the doctor's speech, the two pilots had grown paler and paler.   
  
Duo turned to Heero, his voice low, filled with pain. "Heero...Wu-man..."   
  
"Duo...he'll be okay...he'll be okay. Just calm down. Don't worry." Heero told the American pilot, as soothingly as he could, which, despite his new, and fragile emotions, came out in a monotone.   
  
  
--Outside the Operating Room (a couple of hours later)   
  
Trowa was sitting outside the Operating Room, comforting Quatre. The smaller boy needed nothing more than a hug, and someone to tell him everything was going to be okay. He needed someone to help him through his fear.   
  
Trowa was there for him.   
  
The picture was priceless to anyone walking past. The taller boy hugged the smaller one protectively, as if to protect him from the cloud of fear, of doubt, hesitation that surrounded the hospital, surrounded everything.   
  
"Trowa..." Quatre said. He looked up at Trowa, his eyes huge with unshed tears. "Trowa...Wufei..."   
  
"Shh." Trowa said. "Wufei's going to be okay." Trowa said. He just hoped it was true. They'd seen Wufei, briefly...he'd been torn up, a trickle of blood coming from his mouth, covered in cuts and scratches. His legs and arm weren't obviously broken, but to the other pilots, that was a GOOD sign. When Wufei pulled through--it was a matter of when, not if--he'd be able to get back into karate more easily, and with less rehabilitation, than he would have if they had been worse fractures.   
  
More easily. Nothing could keep Wufei away from karate. Nothing except...death. And they weren't going to concede their trust in their friend to simple fear yet.   
  
They looked up as the door opened and a doctor walked out. He looked at the two, and smiled a weak smile. Quatre's heart leapt with joy.   
  
"Congratulations...your friend has pulled through." the doctor said. "It was kind of risky for a minute or two there, but we got him out. We've repaired the internal bleeding and reset his bones. The concussion will heal with time. We're giving him two days in intensive care, then we'll move him into the same room as your friend, as he has a double room. The other half was just currently empty, but this provides the perfect chance to fill it,"   
  
Quatre and Trowa looked at each other, and smiled. Trowa draped one of his arms around the other pilot's shoulders, hugging him to his side, almost possessively.   
  
"Can we see him?" Quatre asked, leaning against Trowa thankfully.   
  
"Yes. I must warn you, he's rather beaten up looking...but he'll heal," the doctor assured them, then pushed open the door. They walked into the room, which had been cleaned, all utensils removed. Wufei's bed had been rolled around, as they were going to move him to the Intensive Care Ward.   
  
Quatre and Trowa looked down at their friend. He was covered in bandages; a long, stitched-up incision crossed his chest, where they'd performed the surgery; his left arm and his legs were in casts. His eyes were closed, and his mouth was in a frown. Quatre leaned down next to Wufei's ear, and whispered something to him.   
  
As Quatre and Trowa turned to leave, neither of them noticed the way Wufei's frown became a half-smile, and his face settled into an expression of peace.   
  
  
--Duo's Hospital Room (Barely two minutes later)   
  
Duo and Heero both looked up as Quatre and Trowa walked in. Duo cried out, "Is Wufei okay? What happened? Is he alive?"   
  
"He's okay, Duo." Quatre said, smiling. "He's going to be okay. He suffered internal bleeding, a concussion, and got both of his legs and his left arm broken, but he's going to live. It seems like his stubbornness helped pull him through,"   
  
Duo smiled. "Yeah, Wu-man's pretty stubborn and mean all right!" he joked, really relieved and happy that his friend was okay.   
  
"They're going to move him in here with you." Trowa said.   
  
Duo grimaced. "Oh, that's perfect. The doctors said I could start getting up tomorrow. That means he'll be asking ME to do everything when one of you three isn't around...I can hear it now. 'Water, Maxwell!' 'Magazine, you baka!'" Duo grumbled.   
  
"Duo...I doubt he'll do that, somehow." Heero assured him. Duo smiled at Heero, then at the others.   
  
"Well, really I wouldn't mind if he did, actually...I'm just glad he's okay." Duo said.   
  
  
--Elsewhere (Some time later)   
  
The girl walked back into the room, closing the door behind her with a click.   
  
"Well?" the scientist asked her.   
  
"Sir...he's in the hospital. He was the victim of a hit-and-run."   
  
The scientist cursed under his breath. "Somebody must be trying to get to them ahead of us. Let's back off for a while and see if it's related to our actions..."   
  
"Yes, sir."   
  
---   
  
To be continued...   
  
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[1] Sorry if I was a bit offensive with the food description here, but I have had bad hospital food experiences in the past and it offered an opportunity for plot advancement. ^_^   
  
Thanks for reading, review if you've got the time please! ~Shadow 


	3. Chapter 3

The Sniper Project   
By: [Shadow~Of~Shadows][1]   
Chapter Number: 3   
  
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Disclaimer: Gundam Wing does not belong to me. So you can't sue.   
  
Warnings: Shounen-ai, violence, AU-ish, Pilots didn't destroy their Gundams at the end of EW...   
  
Author's Notes: First off, thanks for your supportive comments! Next, I'm sorry that it took so long to get this out (final exams, end of school, and writer's block). I'm also sorry if I have to subject you to any more long waits, but it's going to all fit together soon, just keep reading! Flames are not only laughed at, but dissected and posted at my site.   
  
**Additional Warning: Extra violence, possibly offensive occurances.**   
  


---   
  
From here, it continues...   
  
---

  
  
--Duo's Hospital Room (Two Days Later)   
  
Two days after Wufei's accident, and late at night to boot, Trowa and Quatre were at the hospital.   
  
Not only were they at the hospital, but they were getting creamed at Blackjack by Duo.   
  
Quatre looked at his eight and four. He bit his lip. "...Hit," he said after an eternity.   
  
Duo delicately shifted a card from the deck to Quatre. A King. Quatre groaned in defeat.   
  
The braided boy grinned and scooped the pile of M&M's, which they were betting with, into his hands. "I think that's enough for tonight," he said, pointing at the clock.   
  
Trowa looked at the clock and his eyebrows went up in mild shock. "I didn't realize it was that late," he said.   
  
Duo grinned. Just as he shoved half his handful of candy into his mouth, a knock came on the door. Confused, Quatre walked over to open it and an orderly walked in, checking the setups on the other side of Duo's bed, preparing for another bed to be moved in. Duo froze, the rest of the candy halfway to his mouth, and watched. The orderly checked the hookups on the wall, and several things on a computer monitor, before nodding to somebody outside the door that Duo couldn't see.   
  
Two more orderlies walked in--pushing a bed in front of them. Duo's eyes widened in shock. Wufei was on the bed--and he was covered in bandages, including three casts. The boy's hair was unbound and scattered on the pillow, his eyes closed in sleep. The third orderly, the one that had checked over everything, walked over to the other three pilots.   
  
"We've had him sedated, but he should be waking up soon. I'm sorry that we had to move him in here so late at night, but there was a sudden emergency," he said in an apologetic tone.   
  
"Oh, it's perfectly okay." Quatre assured him. "We don't mind,"   
  
Duo, who had started chewing again, nodded in response to Quatre's comment.   
  
The orderly smiled. "Thank you," he said. "Well, I guess we'll be going now," he said, and nodded to the other two orderlies. They all walked out of the room, shutting the door behind themselves with a muted click.   
  
Quatre and Trowa looked over at Wufei with a sigh. Duo looked over as well, and scratched irritably at his wrist, the one they'd had the IV in, until recently. It still itched.   
  
"Do you think he'll be okay?" Quatre whispered.   
  
"I KNOW he will." Duo said. "Knowing Wu-man's horrific temper, he'll pull through this just to deliver justice to the person that did it to him." Duo said. He barely finished the words before a jaw-cracking yawn ripped its way out of his throat and he blinked. "Whoa," he said.   
  
Quatre couldn't help but chuckle slightly. "I guess we'd better go home and get Heero--"   
  
"No need." Heero said from the doorway. The others jumped. They hadn't heard the door open. "I brought the Ninja,"   
  
Quatre frowned. "Heero, are you sure it's safe to be riding that motorcycle when it's rained so much? Some of those mountain roads are so slick! One wrong turn and--"   
  
"I know what I'm doing, Quatre." Heero told the blonde boy calmly. "I suggest you two go home and get some sleep. I think you could use it,"   
  
Quatre frowned, but he knew the other pilot had a serious point. Besides, he was probably only being paranoid, Heero should have absolutely no trouble with a motorcycle after being a Gundam pilot. Still, apprehension gnawed at the edges of his mind, but he finally decided to let it go.   
  
"Okay, then, Heero." Quatre said. "Come on Trowa, let's get back to the house. Heero, please say hello to Wufei for us if he wakes up anytime soon,"   
  
Heero nodded. "Okay. I will,"   
  
The other two nodded and left. They made their way downstairs and climbed into the truck. Quatre sighed as Trowa started the engine. The noise was nearly lost, but Trowa still caught it anyway.   
  
He looked over at Quatre. "What's wrong?" he asked.   
  
"Oh, nothing, I'm just...worried I guess." Quatre said.   
  
"Don't be." Trowa said. "Heero's one of the best pilots out there. If he gets hurt...well, it's all downhill from there, right?"   
  
This reassured Quatre somewhat. "Yes, you're right," he said, and sat back as Trowa drove carefully out onto the roads and then started down the back paths that would take them back to the safe house.   
  
"Maybe all we need is some sleep." Trowa said. "I admit I could use some. I haven't slept much lately,"   
  
"Me either." Quatre confessed. "Been too worried about Duo and Wufei I guess,"   
  
"We all are." Trowa said.   
  
  
--Back at the Hospital (same time)   
  
Heero sat down in the chair next to Duo's bed, putting the motorcycle helmet he'd carried in with him underneath it. He looked around, breathing in the hushed scent of somewhat stale flowers mixed with the common cleaner scent of hospitals. Wufei's slightly ragged breaths from the bed next to the window struck an odd counterpoint against the sound of the air conditioners. Heero leaned back in the thin, narrow chair, the flat featureless construction providing no comfort. He sighed.   
  
Duo turned his head towards Heero, blinking sleepily. He yawned. "You gonna stay here all night, Hee-chan?"   
  
Heero nodded, not even warning Duo off of the nickname. Duo nodded, and his head fell back onto the pillow, his eyes closed almost instantly, out like a light. Heero looked around the room. The pale, featureless wall paint provided no distraction, and neither did the pastel painting hung on the opposite wall. It was featureless and somehow dreary. The flowers, cut as they were, wilted and died slowly. Only one plant was healthy, a small green potted plant, not a flower, that Wufei had insisted they bring the first time they'd come to see Duo. He'd brushed off the concerns by saying that with all the dying flowers, it would be good to see a nice healthy green plant around. Heero, right now, couldn't blame him.   
  
Then Heero shifted his gaze to the same boy that had so fiercely insisted on the plant, who was frowning in his sleep. Bandages covered one of his arms, or what one could see of it under the hospital gown. The other arm was in a cast, as well as both legs. They'd taken his hair out of its familiar ponytail, and he looked...different without it that way. Just then Wufei muttered something. Heero leaned in, trying to hear, but realized he was speaking in Chinese. Just then Wufei started to open his eyes. He winced slightly, and moved to run his hand over his chest, but looked at it, as if just now realizing it was in a cast. His gaze shifted to Heero, and he attempted to talk, once, twice, then coughed, and tried again. This time, he managed, despite the fact that his voice was scratchy.   
  
"Heero...where am I? The last thing I remember was blacking out after...after..." a sudden look of fury crossed the boy's features. "After I got hit by that...baka!"   
  
Heero pulled the chair a bit closer to Wufei's bed. "You're at the hospital. In fact, in the same room that Duo's in. You were lucky to get out alive, they said,"   
  
Wufei's face hovered between expressions of doubt, fear, and anger. "So...what was the tally of my injuries?" he asked in a low tone of voice.   
  
"One broken arm. Two broken legs. Numerous lacerations. Internal bleeding. Several broken ribs. Also, a concussion." Heero told him.   
  
Wufei listened to it all, then frowned. He shook his head. "What time is it right now?"   
  
Heero realized he must be blocking Wufei's view of the clock. "Two A.M." he told the other pilot.   
  
Wufei's eyes widened in shock, and he tilted his gaze to the window, over which the blinds were drawn, obscuring any light going out--or coming in.   
  
"Oh." Wufei said quietly. "No wonder..."   
  
Heero couldn't suppress a brief chuckle. Suddenly, he remembered something. "Oh yes, Quatre and Trowa said for me to tell you that they said hello,"   
  
Wufei frowned slightly. "Well, hello to them too. I hate it when people do that...can't say hello back if they're gone..."   
  
Heero smiled slightly. "Well, can I get you anything? Glass of water? A snack? Duo's been hoarding chips and candy bars from the machine down the hall, so there's bound to be something in there that you could eat,"   
  
Wufei frowned slightly, as if thinking, then looked at Heero again. "Just a glass of water, please,"   
  
Heero nodded, then got up and poured a glass of water. Meanwhile, Wufei thought.   
  
_Why is he so...open all of a sudden?_ he thought, perplexed. Perhaps it had happened while he'd been knocked out. That made sense, sort of. With a slight shake of his head, Wufei took the glass of water in his good hand and took a sip, then put it down on the table next to his bed. "I think I'll try and get some sleep now," he told Heero.   
  
"Okay, I'll be here if you need anything." Heero told him,   
  
  
--Safe House (A little bit later)   
  
Trowa pulled into the garage at the safe house, and both pilots jumped out of the truck and made their way into the safe house. They barely made it into the living room before a wave of exhaustion that seemed to have been holding back until this very time swamped them. Quatre yawned, loudly, and eyed the sofa with a new respect. "I never thought I'd hear myself say this, but that sofa is looking pretty good,"   
  
"You'll be in no shape to pilot a Gundam or take hospital watch if you don't sleep somewhere where you can get good sleep. As restless as you've been lately, you'd probably fall off." Trowa said. He gently grabbed Quatre's arm and guided the blonde boy into the room they shared. He led Quatre over to his bed, then walked over to his own, barely managing to turn out the light before he fell asleep. His last thought and wonder was WHY exactly they were so tired, but just as his mind, alarmed, registered the fact that it might be dangerous to fall asleep, he fell asleep...   
  
  
--Duo and Wufei's Hospital Room (Next morning)   
  
Heero looked over at Duo as the boy woke up slowly, yawning. The braided pilot opened his violet eyes and glanced around before settling his gaze on Heero and grinning. He beckoned Heero over, and the other pilot obliged.   
  
"Heero, will you go order breakfast for me?" Duo said, giving the Japanese pilot his most pleading look. Heero sighed and walked out into the hall to order breakfast. Just as he walked out, Wufei yawned, signaling that he was about to join the realms of wakefulness.   
  
"OI! HEERO!!!" Duo shouted. Heero came running back in. Wufei woke up completely. Both looked at Duo in a decent amount of confusion.   
  
"Wufei woke up. He needs food too." Duo informed Heero, then grinned wickedly.   
  
"Baka!" Heero and Wufei chorused in unison. Heero walked out again, just as Wufei rolled his eyes.   
  
"Maxwell, you are such a baka," he informed the American pilot.   
  
"Yeah, but it works for me!" Duo said cheerfully. Wufei couldn't help but smile.   
  
  
--Hospital Cafeteria (A couple of minutes later)   
  
Heero grabbed the tray loaded with cereal and toast and juice, then started making his way back to the room. On his way, he glanced at the clock, then did a double take. Either Trowa or Quatre should have been here long ago--about a half hour. Heero quickly took the food back to the room, then explained to the other two pilots that he was going to go and make sure everything was okay, given current circumstances.   
  
They nodded in understanding and Heero left.   
  
  
--Mysterious Underground Hideout {Nearby} (Same time)   
  
In his mysterious underground hideout, a man, barely past being a teenager, looked at various viewscreens. One showed a girl with flashy silver hair. He could only watch as she was raped, again. He winced, tears dripping from his eyes. He wished his sister had a better life than what she had.   
  
His gaze turned to another viewscreen, which showed Heero in the parking lot, putting on his motorcycle helmet and kicking the Ninja into gear. Then there was the matter of the Gundam Pilots. He couldn't allow the people his sister was being controlled by to capture them, even if it meant disabling, or even killing, the boys. He watched as Heero carefully looked both ways before pulling out into traffic.   
  
"Being careful won't save you now." the man said to nobody in particular, then swept out of the room and towards the mobile suit hangar in his hideout.   
  
  
--Along a Deserted Road (Some time later)   
  
The mysterious girl watched as traffic passed by from on top of the cliff she was on, sniper rifle in her hands. Her camouflage gear came in handy here. She looked down at her sensor...the pilot was growing closer...it was all a matter of time...   
  
--Safe House (Same time)   
  
Trowa woke from a hazy, induced sleep. Frightened, he tried to wake Quatre, but failed. He feared the worst, for Heero, for the other pilots, and for himself and Quatre. Suddenly, an alarm went off. He ran over to the computer in their room to see what it was. There was another mobile suit in radius. Worse yet--Trowa looked at the clock--Heero might be coming back to see what was going on! However, that mobile suit looked like it might be headed towards town, and Trowa knew that they couldn't risk the lives of innocents in this battle. He looked over Quatre, hoping the blonde boy would be okay, and ran out to the hangar, locking every door, leaving a note, and arming the AI on the other Gundams. It was all he could do. He leapt into Heavyarms and powered up the somber blue Gundam, preparing to do battle with the opposing mobile suit.   
  
With a muttered oath, the acrobat was out of the hangar and on his way to battle.   
  
  
--Deserted Road (Same time)   
  
Heero drove along on his motorcycle when an alarm went off in his helmet. "Nani...a mobile suit? But...but where?!" surely he would see it from here, unless it had...   
  
"Stealth." the word was deadly. It could be anywhere--   
  
Suddenly Heero had a sense of ... of something being slammed down in front of the motorcycle. Swerving, he barely missed the beam of the thermal blade weapon as it slammed into the ground in front of the motorcycle. Heero tried not to think about what would have happened to him if he hadn't swerved, and kept driving, looking for a way around the crater created by the weapon.   
  
Suddenly, something hit the motorcycle--hard. He was sent flying. Heero leapt away from the motorcycle, which exploded. He felt something crunch as he landed--probably his legs. He tried moving but pain screamed through every cell of his body, swamping his senses. His gaze clouded over, becoming hazy, red, and he looked up through a wash of blood as his attacker came into light.   
  
It had, indeed, been cloaked--a giant black mobile suit, shining, dangerous, glimmering, covered in razor edges and with a long beam sword. It raised the sword, doubtless to obliterate him from existence.   
  
It didn't get the chance. Heero watched in shock as a blue and pale grey Gundam slammed into the mobile suit, knocking it aside, and raised a double gatling gun, firing relentlessly at the mobile suit.   
  
Trowa--but why, and how? Heero tried to sit up and felt a screaming, stabbing pain in all four limbs. He decided against it. He watched as Heavarms chased the mobile suit away and came back over to look down at him.   
  
Trowa was sick at the sight that greeted him. Heero was lying in a pool of his own blood, still bleeding heavily, bones sticking out, lacerations, completely torn up. Trowa immediately dialed for help from his Gundam and landed Heavyarms on the side of the road, leaping out and running over to Heero. The boy's blue eyes were pained and blood painted his face a sick crimson shade.   
  
"Heero...hang in there!" Trowa nearly shouted.   
  
---   
  
So...will Heero survive? Who's this mysterious guy? Only time will tell...   
  
If you've got the time to review, please do so! I love reviews =^.^=   
  
~Shadow 

   [1]: mailto:lonelyshadow42@yahoo.com



	4. Chapter 4

The Sniper Project

The Sniper Project

By: Shadow~Of~Shadows

Chapter Number : 4

Disclaimer : I own nothing but three Gundam action figures, none of the pilots, and no real Gundams.Therefore you can't sue.(If you do, and take away my Gundams, I'll find some way to hurt you.)

Warnings : Shounen-ai, violence, slight AU and OOC.

Author's Notes : I finally got Microsoft Word!YAAAY!I should be getting chapters out a lot faster now.

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From here, it continues…

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--Hospital ER (a short time after the attack)

Heero came back to his senses slightly.He heard shouting, and the loud beeping of hospital monitors.A voice he recognized broke through the fog…Trowa…

"He's not going to die, is he?" he heard Trowa say.

"We're trying everything we can.Just keep up hope." He heard another doctor say.A cold fear struck him.He might…die?Before, he would have died for the mission…but now he had other things to look out for…like Duo.

That reminded him.Duo!Oh no, Duo must know about this.How did Duo feel?He had to be out of his mind with worry and pain.Heero had to reassure his friend that he was okay…

"I've got brainwave measurements here."He heard somebody say.

"He may be trying to wake up.We'll have to sedate him." He froze inwardly at those words.He was obviously being closely monitored…while this was not a bad thing, in fact, it was very good, it meant that he couldn't so much as wake up before being put back into an artificial sleep once again.

"Right, sir." He heard somebody else say.A mere prick of pain on his arm barely registered with all the other throbbing pains demanding attention throughout his body, and he soon found himself slipping into an uneasy unconsciousness.

--Duo and Wufei's Hospital Room (a short time later)

Trowa walked into the room, sighing uneasily.He looked at Duo and Wufei.Duo was unusually pale, especially since he'd been recovering at a very rapid rate and had looked very healthy.He was quivering slightly as he stared down at his hands.Wufei just looked dumbstruck.He was shaking his head slowly as he stared at the wall.He looked up at Trowa as he walked in.

"Trowa…" Wufei said quietly. "Trowa…please…you and Quatre…please be careful."

"We will, Wufei, I'm going to check on him right now." Trowa promised the Chinese pilot, and with that, turned and left the room.

Duo turned to Wufei, and said, in a weak, hushed voice, "Wu-man?"

Wufei didn't even warn Duo off of the nickname.He turned to Duo with a sad smile.

"Duo…he'll be okay…just believe."

--Safe House 023E (a short time later)

Trowa had managed to rent a motorcycle, after his explanation of not having a vehicle by putting stealth on his Gundam, and explained that he'd walking along when he'd seen the mess and had a cell phone that he'd called for help on, before he'd dropped it somewhere.It wasn't the best of excuses, but it got him the motorcycle, and with it, he got back out to Heavyarms.

Trowa climbed into his Gundam and settled into the seat, gazing over the panels, before strapping in and taking off back to the safe house.He arrived shortly and put his Gundam back in the hangar with the others after giving a clearance code.He leapt out of his Gundam with all his acrobatic flair, and then ran into the house and down to the bedroom he shared with Quatre to check on the aforementioned boy.

He was still asleep.

Trowa sat down on the edge of Quatre's bed, brushing some of the smaller boy's bangs out of his eyes with one of his hands.Quatre stirred slightly, then slowly opened his eyes.Trowa didn't bother moving his hand.

"Tro-trowa?" Quatre said.He sat up slightly, or tried to, then moved his hand to cover Trowa's."Ungh…I have…I have a horrible headache…"

"Quatre, I have some bad news." Trowa said in a quiet tone of voice.

"What…no…no…not Heero…Heero didn't…?" Quatre said in a soft tone of voice, his eyes gaining more and more of a haunted look to them as he continued.

"He's not dead…but he…it was another mobile suit." Trowa said.

Quatre's eyes widened."But with all the new regulations…"

"It was most likely illegally created.Heavyarms' scanners picked up no registration data whatsoever."

Quatre sighed, and then fell back onto the bed."Why?Why is it being done?What did we do to anger whoever is doing this?"  
  
Trowa hesitated, and then pulled the smaller boy up into a hug."There's always the possibility that it's somebody from the war.Some pilot's family…brother or sister…out to get revenge…against the Gundam pilots."

Quatre sighed."As much as I wish you were wrong…I know that it could very likely be right."

Trowa nodded slightly, then shifted as Quatre wrapped his arms around him."Thank you, Trowa."

"For…for what?" Trowa said, looking down at Quatre.

"For being here." Quatre said, with a tiny, sad smile.

--Secret Laboratory (same approximate time)

The scientist was not pleased.

"Ready the Silver Suit, if we have to we'll destroy all five of the Gundams." He snarled.

His primary tech glanced at the viewscreens around him, at the scientist, then down at the floor again."As you wish, sir.I'll see that it's done immediately."

"Excellent." The scientist said.He sat back in his chair as the tech left.

The tech ran through the halls, muttering quietly to himself.He reached the specialized hangar, where several mobile suits stood, each one different, each one as deadly as the others, but not in the same way.He walked over to stand in front of the one the scientist had been talking about; the one they called the Silver Suit.

He craned his head back slightly, looking up at it, and sighed.The thing looked almost like some overly armored samurai from ancient lore.Silvery plates of defensive armor covered it from head to toe.Its shield was large, and silver, as the rest of it was, and provided a large area of protection.In its left hand was its primary weapon, a weapon they had no name for.Though not exceptionally powerful, it shot both laser beams and laser bombs that exploded into clouds of shrapnel.The weapon didn't have to be overly powerful, though, because the armor on the Silver Suit was fantastic.The tech walked over, and, with an air of somebody touching something they're not supposed to, laid one of his hands, palm down, on the sleek silver metal of the suit's foot.He looked back up again, and could almost imagine the sleek, blue-tinted eyes the suit sported when it was active looking down at him.

"Why must such beauty be used for such slaughter?" he whispered quietly to the empty hangar, and to the Silver Suit.

The suit gave no answer.

The tech turned, and left.

--Safe House 023E (a good bit later)

Trowa dialed up Sally on their portable communication panel, even though she'd told him to do so only if it was an emergency.

He considered this an emergency.

Quatre watched from Trowa's side as the screen came up that meant Sally was out of her office.

Trowa cleared his throat when the message prompt came."This is Trowa reporting…we've run into some trouble.It seems that a…sniper is trying to take us out.I'm requesting backup and a site change…Heero, Duo, and Wufei have been injured already and they're currently hospitalized…please, help us out here."

He pushed the button to end the call, and then hung his head.With a sigh, he turned his head to the side slightly, away from Quatre."Well…that's it, then.We've failed our mission…but…"

Quatre gently slipped his arms around Trowa's neck, using the advantage of height since he was standing and Trowa was seated."Come on, Trowa, maybe they'll just send in someone to help us clean up the snipers and then we can finish our mission."

Trowa turned his head back to the front, lowering it slightly."I hope you're right, Quatre…"

"Don't worry…it'll all turn out for the best." Quatre said, hugging his friend a bit tighter, then letting go."Why don't we get everything important moved out to the Gundams now?"

"Sounds like a good idea." Trowa said.He stood, and the two pilots started gathering the most important things, such as the laptops, communication panels, and important discs, to take them to where they'd hopefully be safe.

Because if the Gundams weren't safe then…Trowa bit his tongue on that thought.After all, he'd been the one that said that if Heero were injured, it'd all go downhill.

Was it going downhill now?

--Duo and Wufei's Hospital Room (about the same time)

Duo and Wufei looked up as a nurse walked in.She checked over Duo's charts once, matched it with something on her chart, and then looked at him."Well, Mr. Maxwell, you're free to go.I'm happy to see you've recovered so quickly, even with all the new technology.

Duo forced a grin.It looked just like his normal, cheerful grin but it was all a mask. "Yes ma'am, I don't think anything can keep me down for long!" he joked.

Wufei muttered something that Duo couldn't hear.

Duo looked over at him just as the nurse put a pile of clothing onto his bed.He looked at it, astonished."Hey, but these were…the clothes I was wearing when I got…" he didn't say the last word.She could fill in the blanks.

She smiled."Well, not exactly.Those were…torn…and stained and…well…she looked up again, trying to lighten the mood with a smile as false as his grin."We had one of your friends bring you a spare set from your house.It started with a T, I can't really remember, I'm afraid."

"Trowa." Duo supplied.He picked up the familiar black clothing, smelling the scent of the detergent they used.It was a familiar smell, and it brought back memories of several different things.He swallowed any tears he might have been intending to cry and looked up at her."Thanks for bringing them in here!"

"You're welcome." She said.She looked down at her watch."Well, I'd better be going now." She said, and promptly made her way to the door.Duo stood up and took the pile of clothing, walking into the small bathroom that connected to the hospital room.He quickly shed his hospital gown and got into his normal clothing, having already brushed his hair and his teeth that morning.He walked back out into the hospital room, only to find Wufei looking at him.The other pilot frowned.

"Duo…you look like a ghost…you're so pale." Wufei muttered.

Duo took a step back.Wufei had used his first name.Was he slipping?Duo contemplated this while spitting out a quick reply."A ghost, or Shinigami?" giving one of his trademark grins to the Chinese pilot, he grabbed the minor things he'd been storing next to his bed."I'm gonna go see Heero, if they'll let me, then I'm going to get out of here and back to the safe house, if I can."

Wufei nodded. "Be careful."

"I will, no worries there." Duo assured him, before walking out of the room and down the halls.He got directions from a piece of paper stapled to a bulletin board, then made his way to the correct place.

"Is Heero Yuy cleared for visitors yet?" he asked the nurse.

"Immediate family only." She said in a bland tone, not even looking up from her romance novel.

Duo resisted the urge to say something nasty and instead smiled slightly and said "I'm one of the few people he considers family."

She looked up at him, and then looked down at the register."Name please?"

"Duo Maxwell." He said.

She blinked, as if unbelieving that he was actually telling the truth."Okay, down this hall, three lefts, one right, and the second door to you're left—and there's a ten minute time limit." She informed him.

He gave her a strained smile, and then took the path she'd told him to and opened the door.The sight within frightened him.Heero's eyes were closed, his face paler than pale, and he was covered in hundreds of bandages, many of which defied description.Duo ran over to the other pilot and looked down at him worriedly.

"Heero…" Duo breathed, the pain and fear in his voice evident.

Heero didn't respond; then again, Duo didn't expect for him to.

"Oh…Heero…I didn't think it was this bad…" Duo said, the pain in his voice great enough that it was easy to tell that he was holding some of it back—even though loads of it was already expressed into his voice.

Duo leaned over Heero, and brushed his fingertips lightly against one of the few bare spots of skin on Heero's face.His eyebrows crinkled together in frustration and he drew his hand back, then turned.

"Heero, I won't stop until I see the person that did this to you dead by my hands or by one of the other guy's hands.You just can't understand…" Duo breathed, then rushed from the room.

Behind him, Heero twitched.

--Safe House 023E (some time later)

Quatre and Trowa finished loading the last of the important things into the Gundams, then sat down next to the giant suits to eat a couple of sandwiches.They ate in silence, occasionally glancing up at the Gundams, before looking back to their sandwiches again and munching in a rushed sort of silence.As soon as Quatre finished his sandwich, he moved over to sit down next to Trowa on one of Heavyarms' feet, watching the taller boy finish his sandwich.Trowa finally finished eating, then looked at the smaller boy sitting beside him.

"Oh, Trowa…" Quatre said, all the emotions he'd been holding in spilling into his voice.Pain, hurt, fear, and even a tiny bit of…longing?Trowa blinked slowly.He blinked again, for it seemed Quatre was a tiny bit closer than he had been.Was Quatre—

Trowa suddenly realized what he should do, even though he wasn't 100% sure how he realized it.He gathered the smaller boy into a hug.He guessed maybe they all needed somebody to lean on in a time like this.Quatre wrapped his arms around Trowa gratefully and they stayed that way for several minutes, gradually calming down, before an alarm went off.Trowa jerked his head up immediately.

"Quatre.Get in your Gundam." He said.The blonde boy nodded and immediately ran over to Sandrock, getting in as quickly as he could.Trowa followed suit and they kicked the two suits into life.Just then they saw a figure run into the hangar.Trowa immediately jerked one of his gatling guns up and aimed as Quatre pulled out Sandrock's shotels and prepared to slice the intruder in half.They both watched as the view systems homed in on the figure…and then saw it was Duo.

"Duo!" they both said at once.Quatre turned on his outside speakers."Duo, get in your Gundam, quick!There's another suit coming this way, FAST!"

They saw Duo nod and get into Deathscythe Hell with amazing speed.The scythe-toting Gundam came to life with a quiet hum and a flash of its blazing green eyes.Duo opened a small panel link to Quatre and chuckled quietly."Can't keep me away from Shinigami for long, can you?

Quatre shook his head no just as the sensors registered a red alert.

Trowa suddenly realized something."What if they're out to get all five and want to destroy Altron and Wing Zero too?We have to get out of here and fight it outside!We can't let them scrap Heero and Wufei's Gundams!" the normally quiet pilot exclaimed, and then blasted out of the hangar.The other two followed suit and they faced the strange suit. 

It was a gleaming silvery color all over, except for its eyes and a few minor accents.It held a wicked looking gun in its left hand, and a large silver shield in its right.Duo immediately ran a pattern through his head, and then moved to attack.He dodged left and right, then slammed against the other Gundam and slashed with his scythe viciously.The scythe caused some heat scoring but caused no other significant damage.

"What the?!" Duo exclaimed, as his Gundam was knocked back quickly by laser blasts.Trowa took a quick course behind the other suit and fired off the gatlings, but the bullets simply bounced off.Frustrated, he tried his missiles, but they simply caused minor damage.

Quatre decided he'd try next, and slammed bodily into the other suit.He pulled loose a shotel and slashed at the shield—and was rewarded with success when his weapon cut through the shield slightly.He kept pressing on the handle until half the shield was cut off and fell to the ground with a clang.

The other suit looked down at the shield, then back up at Sandrock.Then, without another word or warning, it simply vanished.

The other three pilots searched for nearly an hour, but they didn't locate the strange Gundam.Considerably shaken up, they retreated back to the safe house and climbed out of their Gundams, talking to each other in hushed tones, and wondering what was going to happen next.As they formulated plans, they couldn't help but wonder if they were going to have to deal with more Gundams that strong—or, if they had to, how they could possibly defeat them.

And they had to defeat them, being in such a situation as they were in.

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Well, that's it for Chapter Four!Please review if you've got the time.

~Shadow


	5. Chapter 5

The Sniper Project

The Sniper Project

By : Shadow~Of~Shadows

Chapter Number : 5

Disclaimer : The things I own total a Deathscythe Hell EW Model action figure, my mind, and half a bowl of ramen noodles.See?GW isn't listed.That's because I don't own it.So you can't sue.

Warnings : Shounen-ai, violence, language, slight OOC, slight AU.

Author's Notes : Nearly done, just a few more chapters…thank you ALL for reviewing!I really enjoy reading the reviews.And I'm REALLY sorry about this weird spacing thing that Word is pulling…just bear with me. -.-;;

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From here, it continues…

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--Safe House 023E (A short time after the attack)

Duo leaned back against the counter in the small kitchen of the safe house, glancing across at Quatre and Trowa, who were seated at the table.The blonde boy glanced down at his bowl of some kind of stew that Trowa had made—it was delicious, but it just lacked…something.Perhaps it was because his stomach churned so much just thinking about the attacks…and about how another one could come at any second.

"Thinking too hard, I see." He heard a soft voice say.He looked up and across at Trowa, who had put down his fork and was looking at the blonde boy in a concerned way."I don't' really think the stew is what's making you look that worried, after all." Trowa said quietly.

Quatre picked up his fork and speared something out of his stew—totally at random--and brought it to his mouth, chewing. From the texture, it was probably meat of some kind, but he was hard pressed to tell what kind it was.It was rather good—but he just couldn't place the meat.

"Maybe we should sleep in our Gundams." Duo remarked.The other two looked up, and then nodded slightly.If they turned the AI of the Gundams on, and slept inside them, they'd be relatively safer than in the house.After all, the house was only brick and wood and plaster, but the Gundams were made of Gundanium alloy…any self-respecting mobile suit could cut through a house in a few seconds, but a Gundam could withstand at least one hit, usually.Trowa cursed the usually.There was always something out there bigger, stronger and faster, and he didn't want to think of what it was.

Quatre perked up slightly, without warning.He craned his head to one side, as if listening for something.He muttered slightly, and then seemed to hear it again."Ah!Hm, the communications panel we left in our room is going off, Trowa.

Trowa looked at the blonde boy, amazed.How had he heard that from so far away?He decided not to ask and instead jogged to his room, punching the accept call button before it was too late.Sally's face appeared on the screen, and Trowa hooked a chair with his foot and dragged it over, sitting down so that he could talk to the woman.

"Trowa, I hear you need backup." She said calmly.Trowa only nodded in response, so she kept talking."Unfortunately, there's been news of a 'fire' starting somewhere in Eastern North America so we had to deploy all of the people that would be helpful to you there.The funny thing is, it almost looked as if it was planned."

Trowa's breath caught in his throat.Planned?What if it was planned to draw the other Preventers away from the headquarters so that they'd be left helpless—no, he was just being paranoid.He forced himself to calm down.Sally was in the middle of a sentence, so he'd missed something."I'm sorry, can you repeat what you just said?" he asked, in his most polite tones.

Sally sighed slightly then repeated her comment."Since we're out of people to send, we're sending an upgrade for your Gundams.It should help you track down these people.We're sending you a similar 'upgrade' for yourselves, no surgery required.You'll see what I'm talking about.Use the new technology to track them down, and then you can strike.Just be careful."

Trowa nodded slowly."Well, thank you, Sally, and goodbye." He said softly, then ended the call and made his way back to the kitchen.Duo wasn't there, but Quatre was, still picking at his stew.The blonde boy let out a sigh and stabbed a piece of potato with a frightening ferocity, obviously unaware that Trowa was standing behind him.Trowa gently touched one of his shoulders and Quatre jumped slightly, throwing down his fork and twisting his head around.He searched for words for a second, and then decided on what he'd say."Back so soon?How'd it go?Is she sending us extra soldiers?"

Trowa took the seat opposite Quatre once again."No, they're just sending us some upgrades for our Gundams and something for ourselves.There was a slight rebellion somewhere in Eastern Northern America, so all their soldiers got sent there."

Quatre looked slightly sick at the announcement. "So…we have to…?" he looked at the taller pilot pleadingly.Trowa nodded, a somewhat sad look in his green eyes.Just then Duo ran in the door."Hey guys!The Preventers just sent us a biiiig box!I don't know what's inside but it looks promising!" with that, the American pilot ran back out the door, braid trailing behind him.Trowa sighed, and then looked at Quatre with a slight smile."Well, here we go."

--Secret Laboratory {Hangar} (About the same time)

The primary tech climbed the scaffolding up to where the Silver Suit was resting.It was still slightly hot from battle, and the dark, jagged edge where the shield had been cut through was obvious against the gleaming surface of the mech.He ran one hand gently over the blackened metal, almost drawing his hand back in distaste as he ran over the jagged edge.He didn't even seem to notice when his palm was slit open a bit and drops of fresh, hot blood dripped down his hand and across the metal of the mech.It wasn't very visible against the jagged, dark, burnt blackness of where the shotel had not-so-neatly clipped the bottom half of the shield off, but it created bright trails that could be seen in the somewhat dim lights of the hangar.It was then he made up his mind to do something he'd been plotting for a while, even though it was suicide.He slipped down from the scaffolding and pulled on a drab, dark orangey-yellow flight suit and a helmet, then checked around.Making sure nobody was around, he quickly grabbed the line that he'd left extended near the Silver Suit's foot and was pulled up into the cockpit of the mech.He closed the hatch, and then turned to the other two suits, jokingly called the Green Suit and the Blue Suit, just as this one was called the Silver Suit.Nobody called them by their real names.He quietly gave the Silver Suit the command to walk over to the Blue Suit, then gently guided what was now _his_ mech into taking the primary weapon of the other—a long, strange weapon they'd revived from ancient Earth history—a beam pike.He slipped it into the Silver Suit's hand, then, with a last look around, he blasted out of the hangar, bound for safer territory and a life he'd lost.

--Safe House 023E {Hangar} (A good bit of time later)

Duo wiped one of his hands off on his forehead, taking a last look at the new feature that they'd just installed on all their Gundams.It rested on the arm, and they had thoughtfully provided one in each color of the boy's Gundams so that they didn't stick out too horribly against the paint.The handheld ones resembled small pistols—the kinds undercover agents wore—but instead of bullets they had strange ammunition that almost defied description.It had a head on it that was twisted, but not at too sharp an angle—meant to penetrate flesh enough to deposit what was inside the bullet rather than kill.What were inside were microchips.Each boy had a tracking device to track the microchips with as well.Duo had a sneaking suspicion that the new installments on their Gundams did just about the same thing, only in a different way.He slipped down into the cockpit of Deathscythe Hell and powered up the mech, silently flipping switches and finding out the basics of the new addition to his weaponry.He raised an eyebrow at the information.It either shot tracking chips that stuck to the surface of metal and couldn't be removed without removing the entire section of metal, or bombs that stuck and did damage to the computers of things—extremely useful. [1]With a sigh, he powered down the systems and hopped out, coming face to face with Quatre.The smaller boy had odd streaks of grease across his face, making him look like an out-of-place American Indian tribesman—or perhaps a football player.

"Oh, hey Quatre!" Duo said."Would you mind if I went to see Heero?"Quatre lowered his head for a moment, and then looked up at Heavyarms.Trowa looked down at Quatre and nodded.Duo almost swore sometimes that they were psychic.

"Yeah, okay, we'll all go.Just wait until Trowa finishes." Quatre said.He dabbed ineffectually at the greasy streaks on his face with a rag.

"You're done already?" Duo said.Quatre nodded."It wasn't that hard, but Trowa's having some trouble for some reason.He should be done by now though."Just as he finished speaking, Trowa leapt down and landed nimbly next to the other two pilots."Let's go wash up, then we can get going." Trowa said quietly.

"Sounds good to me." Duo said, then walked into the house.

--Heero's Hospital Room/ICU 'Cell' (a short time later)

Duo leaned over Heero's bed, studying the Japanese pilot's face.He sighed and reached out, brushing his fingertips along one of the few unbandaged areas of Heero's face.He leaned over Heero, his eyes betraying none of his thoughts, even though he did.A tear dripped, rather suddenly, from one of Duo's deep violet eyes, and landed on Heero's face.Duo leaned down quickly and gently kissed Heero, full on the lips—he was astonished when Heero's mouth opened slightly, but decided not to go any farther than he already had.Pulling back, he wiped the last tears from his eyes and fled from the room, for a reason even he couldn't place.

Behind him, Heero let out a slight sigh and closed his mouth.Maybe next time…

--Wufei's Hospital Room (same time)

Quatre stepped into Wufei's room.Trowa had decided to stay in the truck, while Duo went to see Heero, so Quatre decided to pay the Chinese boy a visit. When he walked in, Wufei was reading a book, probably one he'd bribed a nurse to get for him.When he heard the click and whoosh of the door, Wufei looked up from his book, expecting another nurse.When he saw Quatre, though, a half-smile reached his face and he put the book down.Quatre walked over and sat down next to Wufei's bed.Wufei reached up with his good arm, which just happened to be on the side that Quatre was sitting on, and brushed something away from the Arabian's face.When Quatre looked at Wufei, he said, by way of explanation, "You had a bit of grease on your face."Quatre nodded slowly, then spoke out himself, quietly."Well, how are you doing?"

"I'm doing okay, considering." The Chinese pilot said. He looked at the window, then back to Quatre."Quatre…how much time do you have?"

Quatre sat forward immediately, feeling that this was important."As much time as I need, why, Wufei?"

The Chinese pilot appeared to be debating with himself."I'm ready to talk…" he finally sighed and turned to face Quatre.He cleared his throat, then started talking, voice shaking slightly."Her name was Meiran…"

--Parking Lot (A while later)

Duo looked up, fidgeting again."I wonder where he is."

Trowa shook his head."Maybe Wufei had something to tell you.He'll come."

Just then Duo shot up in his seat. "I see him!I see him!But what's…"

"Wufei must have told him something very sad." Trowa said softly, as the Arabian walked over and climbed into the truck, his face pale, and his eyes a bit red around the edges.Quatre nodded towards the road, looking out the window."We should get back.We need to start tracking that odd mobile suit, or any other suit for that matter."

Trowa looked in concern at his small friend, but nodded.They drove off.

--Hidden Underground Lair (short time later)

The man sat up as his repairman walked in.

"Sir, she's good as new, we even reinforced some of the armor and gave her another coat of that special paint." The repairman said, fidgeting slightly.Truth be told, he was kind of scared of the other man.

"Good, good…so it's ready to fly?"

"Yes sir." 

"Okay then, good job.I'll be taking her out immediately." He said, and then walked out of the room, and into the dark recesses of his hideout.

--Safe House 023E (some time later) 

The pilots climbed out of the truck and immediately went to their Gundams.They climbed up into them to do a routine check and found something not-so-routine on their new radar.Another mobile suit.Not only that, it was headed in their direction.

"Let's get out of here and fight." Trowa said, arming the AI on the other two Gundams, then flew out of the hangar.He was followed quickly by Sandrock and Deathscythe Hell, then they all made their way towards the other mobile suit.They didn't see it, but it was on radar.That meant only one thing, stealth and cloaks.Duo turned on the infrared heat sensor and saw…nothing.Infrared block?That one was new.Duo commanded Deathscythe to raise the arm that the new tool was mounted on, and then fired a tracking chip.It marked success.The chip immediately sent back reports of metal type, computer type, and hundreds of other things.Duo immediately passed the information onto the other pilots, and then looked at the data himself.It was a new type of alloy, but the suit weighed very little; that spoke towards a less-armored suit that moved fast. Duo made up his mind, not even telling the others what he was doing.He moved in for the kill.

His scythe was up before Quatre and Trowa knew what he was doing, he was charging before they could shout, and when they did shout he was plowing into the other mobile suit, as sparks flashed where their thermal beam weapons collided.Duo snapped open the active cloak and used the added maneuverability to his advantage, zipping around and slashing.Soon, he hit something vital; the cloak on the other mobile suit went down.

It flashed in the sunlight.It was black with silver and red accents and it held a long beam sword in one of its hands, with a shield in the other.Its paint job looked new, but Trowa was even more shocked because he was sure this was the one that he'd fought.His eyes narrowed as he watched Duo slashing and slicing at the other mobile suit expertly.He suddenly got an idea.

He threw Heavyarms into action and zoomed around behind the battling pair of suits and then activated the new chip-firing tool.Instead of a tracking and information chip, however, he shot one of the digital bombs.It stuck, and the effects were instantaneous.The other suit suddenly crackled with electricity, then, miraculously, shut down.Trowa's eyes went wide in shock.If these were this powerful, then what could stand in their way?He decided to contemplate it later.How had they managed to create weapons that powerful?It made the hair rise on the back of his neck.He didn't want to think about something like that.

Quatre opened a small link to Heavyarms, and then started talking to Trowa."That really worked, didn't it?I can't believe it worked so well.At least now we have somebody to question, though, don't we?"

Trowa nodded in agreement.They had somebody to question, indeed!And if they didn't get answers…the boy's eyes narrowed.They'd get answers.

-~-

So the Gundam pilots have managed to capture the mysterious man!But what's up with these new, powerful, 'digital bombs'?Are the Gundam pilots in way more trouble than they realize?It's all coming to an end soon, so stick around…

By the way, I'm sorry this chapter was so short.

[1] I got this idea from a friend of mine, who used this feature in an RPG we did to commit very devastating bombings!Hope you don't mind me using your idea, but it fit here (with a few modifications of course.)

Please review, I live on them! ~Shadow


	6. Chapter 6

The Sniper Project

The Sniper Project

Chapter Number : 6

By : Shadow~Of~Shadows

Disclaimer : I've wished and hoped a million times that I owned Gundam Wing, but, unfortunately, I don't.I just choose to write about it.

Warnings: Shounen-ai, violence, language, slight OOC and AU.

Author's Notes : Thank you SO MUCH for your reviews!I read every one.Thanks again for reading my stories.Also, this story is drawing to a close.Hang in there. 

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From here, it continues…

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--Safe House 023E (A few hours after the MS Fight)

Trowa sighed as he walked upstairs.Duo had the strange man they'd managed to drag out of the other mobile suit bound and chained—yes, chained—to a chair in the basement.The braided boy was interrogating, and not being very nice about it, either.Trowa and Quatre were on the alert and lookout, but were taking a little time to themselves.After all, they reasoned, if they were all dead tired, they wouldn't be able to fight, in any case.The computer systems would alert them if a Mobile Suit came within range, anyway.

The lanky pilot balanced a tray with two cups of coffee on it on one hand as he stopped in front of the bedroom's door.He raised his hand to knock, but heard a particularly beautiful burst of melody from inside.The blonde pilot was obviously playing his violin.

With a quick glance down at the cups of coffee, Trowa set the tray down on the floor, away from the path of the door, and leaned against it, listening to the heard-rending melody coming from inside.The mournful sound of the violin could echo through time and space—or at least through a closed door.Trowa sighed, so blissfully caught up in the music that he didn't notice when it stopped.In fact, he failed to hear the clicks that signaled that Quatre had put the instrument back in its case, and started only when the door swung open.To the inside.

Blast the door.He'd forgotten it opened to the inside.He fell over, trying to regain his balance, but was strangely clumsy, for no reason at all.He cursed his luck—he was an acrobat.Nimble, flexible, highly balanced.Why, then, did he just fall over?

Ah, but not just fall over.He'd happened to fall on top of Quatre.

"Oof!" the smaller pilot said as he hit the ground.

Another curse reached Trowa's mind, but not his lips.He quickly pushed himself up to a kneeling position, offering a hand to Quatre."I'm very sorry, Quatre.Are you okay?"

Quatre looked up at Trowa, his aqua eyes glittering, not with tears, though."It's perfectly okay, Trowa.I'll be fine."He grabbed Trowa's hand and pulled himself up, but didn't get up from there—he used the momentum to push himself into Trowa's arms, wrapping his own arms around the other boy.

"Ohh, Trowa." He whispered.Trowa shivered slightly, feeling the other boy talking close to his ear—it didn't feel all that _bad, _truth be told.He realized the other boy was talking again.

"…love you?"

Trowa froze.Had he just heard what he thought he had?If he had…he leaned back slightly, facing Quatre."I-I'm sorry.I didn't hear what you said."

Quatre repeated his question, his eyes shining slightly."I said, 'How far do I have to go before you realize I love you?'"

Trowa froze for a second, staring into Quatre's eyes._What was it Heero told me that time? 'Always follow your emotions'? Something like that anyway…_ Trowa thought.Well…Quatre had been the one to say the words…Trowa simply did the only thing that came to mind.Leaning forward slightly, he captured Quatre's lips with his own, feeling the Arabian pilot's arms tighten around him for a second, then go slightly limp as he pulled back.

"Sorry, Quatre, I guess I just didn't…" Trowa started, when Quatre made a slight noise.

"Shh.It's okay."Quatre tilted his head to the side, as if thinking about something."Weren't you going to bring some coffee up here?"

"It's…outside." Trowa said."I brought it, but I was leaning against the door to listen to you playing your violin, and—"

Quatre giggled slightly and stood, walking outside.He carried the two mugs of coffee into the room.They were only slightly warm by this time, but that didn't matter.

After all, if the boys were looking towards coffee to warm themselves up, they had a far better way to do so now.

--Basement, Safe House (Same Time)

Duo hissed, pacing back and forth like a panther on the prowl.His long braid flicked behind him like the tail of an angry predatory cat.A single light shone in the basement—the strange man squinted in the semi-darkness, but Duo had no problems at all seeing him.

Finally Duo lost his patience.He walked over and grabbed one of the chains that secured the man to his chair. Grabbing it, Duo pulled on it, hard.The man gasped as a completely different chain, one around his stomach, tightened without warning.

Duo smirked at the confused and surprised look on his face.He'd learned many useful things on the streets, and some of the more obscure ones were finally paying off.Leaning forward, holding the end of the chain in his hand like a leash, he hissed out a question, his normally cheerful voice low and dangerous. 

"Why did you try and kill them?"

The man swallowed, tipping his head forward, his spiky silvery-blonde hair falling into even more disarray.

"There are worse things than death.I was trying to protect you." He said lamely.Truth be told, he was rather scared of the violent Shinigami.This was the same boy he'd shot?That one had been cheerfully chatting to passersby, his braid bouncing as he laughed and skipped around.However, the person before him now was a violent demon, his hair darkened by the room, his violet eyes twin blazing gems of eternal hellfire.His very expression suggested that if he did not get the answers he wanted, he would be more than happy to throw his victim to a pack of rabid wolves, or perhaps step on him with his Gundam.

After a moment of pondering, Duo said, in his most dangerous tone, "_Protect _us?By _killing _us?You have a screwed up sense of logic."

"You don't understand!They want to experiment on you!"

"And they are?"

"A…a company.Their leader was killed…at a base…"

"I see.We killed a lot of people at a lot of bases, so that really doesn't help me much."

The man heaved a shuddering sigh."Me and my sister were raised in their labs."

_Now we're getting somewhere. _"Really?" Duo said, his tone more sympathetic.

He nodded."They…they had a chip in her brain…but not in mine…they gave us silver hair…they called us their machine project."His gaze grew troubled. "Mine faded, so they decided I wasn't good enough.But hers was—ah, still is—pure silver."

Duo frowned slightly.How often did one meet a person with silver hair?Not often.It wasn't even a color you saw people dye their hair often."Continue."

"One of their technicians…stuffed me in an escape pod with a disk full of mobile suit designs when I was five…he said I had to save her someday…"

"Older sister, or younger?" Duo said absently.

"Younger," the man replied, licking his lips."And I watched her.The technician had managed to set up bugs all over the place…I have the keys."

"Despite your twisted sense of logic, you are a most useful person.Continue."

"When I heard they wanted to experiment on you, my first thought was panic.I didn't want you to become projects, machines, like my sister was."

_Why should he care?_ Was Duo's only thought. "Hm.Go on."

"They tore her open.They altered nearly everything about her in some way.Muscles, bones, heart, stomach, ribs…"

Duo shuddered."And what would they do to us?"

"Find out what was so special about the Gundam pilots.How some of you can take several gunshots and keep going until you complete your mission."

Duo made a face."That's nothing biological.It was training."

The man sighed, a haunted look on his face."Then they'd take your brains and figure out a way to implement the training directly into the brains of others.

Duo's skin crawled.His violet eyes were no longer boiling, but shocked."That's…that's…"

"Wrong." The man said.He hesitated."I know I wanted to kill you, but I can see that you're not going to give up that easily.I'd like…to join forces with you."

"I still don't trust you enough for that." Duo replied simply."Though, the information you gave me will be very helpful."

"But…I know where their laboratory is!" he said helplessly.

Duo's eyebrows went up and he leaned forward."Really.Well, I don't even know your name…"

"Test Subject 0423-L." he said bitterly. "I chose the name Draco after I got out though."

Duo looked at Draco thoughtfully.You tell us where the lab is, and we let you fight with us—on one condition.You keep that cloak and infrared blocker on your mobile suit off at all times, and if you make so much as a move to attack one of us, we have every right in the world to kill you.

Draco looked at Duo, his reddish-brown eyes unreadable."Understood."

Duo dropped the chain he'd been holding and grabbed a totally different one, tugging.All the other chains fell off.Duo almost snickered at the surprised look on Draco's face, but restrained himself.Just as he opened his mouth to talk again, they heard a faint mobile-suit-in-radius signal from upstairs.Seconds later the frantic patter of feet running across the floor reached their ears, then the sound of the basement door being slammed open."Duo!Duo!!" Quatre shouted urgently.

"What is it?" the braided pilot asked.

"There's a mobile suit coming fast!We have to hurry!" Quatre said.

Duo swore and jerked Draco to his feet.He dragged the slightly taller man after him, muttering an introduction to Quatre as he did so.He got coordinates for the laboratory before he did anything else, then led Draco out to the hangar, where Quatre and Trowa were already in their Gundams and ready to go.

Duo watched Draco carefully as the other man climbed into his black and red mobile suit, then bounded up into Deathscythe's cockpit, securing belts and powering up.The first thing he heard were Quatre's calm—yet raced—data reports.Duo immediately opened picture links to Quatre, Trowa, and Draco.From what he could see inside of the new pilot's cockpit, his mobile suit looked very up to date.That in itself was intriguing, but Duo decided that now was not the time.

"Let's get out there and meet that mobile suit." Quatre said finally.With a nod, Duo followed Heavyarms and Sandrock out of the hangar.Draco's mobile suit followed Deathscythe.

Duo heard Quatre's stunned gasp and looked up.He gritted his teeth at the sight that met his eyes and swore automatically.It was the silvery mobile suit that they'd fought before, but now instead of holding the shield, it had the gun and a long pole, with no blade.That spoke of a thermal beam weapon.

Sandrock's shotels came into sight as Heavyarms raised one of its giant double guns, aiming at the silvery suit.However, the other mech made no move whatsoever to attack.Duo frowned, then tried connecting to the other suit.Surprisingly, it worked.He was greeted with the sight of a man, in a flight suit, with his helmet off however.The newcomer had longish silver hair and violet eyes brighter than Duo's own.

"You're in danger!" the violet-eyed man said urgently. "Your weapons have been sabotaged!"

Duo blinked."What…how…?"

"You must exit your Gundams immediately!" he said.

"How do I know this isn't some kind of trick?" Duo said questioningly.

"You just have to trust me!" the other man said in a pleading tone.

Curses ran through the American pilot's head.Something about the man's manner made Duo want to trust him, but he—

"Shit! Shit!!" he heard the other man shout, his voice rising.

Duo, alarmed, turned, just in time to see Heavyarms fall flat on its face.Sandrock shuddered, taking one step, then falling, one of the shotels sliding free and slicing into the Gundanium of the desert Gundam's leg.Suddenly, Duo felt Deathscythe seize up.He ran scans, but his computers were freezing.He was just fast enough to see that the new weapon the Preventers had armed him with was…backfiring?

Duo swore loudly.Through the link, he could see both Draco and the other man looking in fright at viewscreens, and heard one last thing."Remote detonators!"

Duo felt a crackle of energy through the cockpit, and slumped forward, the belts digging into his skin as Deathscythe fell._Is this how it ends?_ He thought.

Then the large black and grey Gundam hit the ground, knocking Duo unconscious from the impact.

--Secret Laboratory (Same Time)

The scientist hissed in happiness."It's working!I'll soon have all the Gundam pilots in my grasp and we can begin on the work we started so long ago!" He turned to the silver-haired girl standing nearby, who was staring at one of the viewscreens in shock.

A black suit.And the pilot of the black suit—

Silver blonde hair.Red-brown eyes.He haunted her dreams.He told her she could have a better life.

"Brother…" she mouthed, her lips barely moving.She didn't know just how she knew he was kin, she just…did.

"WERE YOU LISTENING TO ME?!" she heard the scientist scream at her.Startled, she turned to him.

"No sir.I confess I was not." She said.She felt the stinging pain of a slap across her face, but looked at him again.

"I said take the green suit and kill the other two pilots, then bring me the Gundam pilots.All five.With three trapped in their Gundams and two in the hospital, you shouldn't have that much of a problem, should you now?"

"No sir." She said quietly, then turned and ran for the hangars.

--Wufei's Hospital Room (same time)

Wufei sat up.

"Something's wrong…" the Chinese boy said quietly."But…but what?"

He sighed."Maybe it's just my imagination…but…"

Wufei reached down, feeling of the casts and bandages.The breaks were healed, they explained—the new technology for bone breaks was working wonders these days.The gashes on his chest—those he could live with any day.The internal bleeding had been taken care of—he'd just have to be a little careful…

Then, he swore.Even if it was his undoing…

The boy's hand dipped down beside the bed, and pulled up a knife that had been hidden among some snack food.He tested the edge of the blade against the casts, then began sawing at them.He checked the clock.He had maybe an hour before the nurse came back.He sawed quicker.In ten minutes he had the first cast off.The ones on his legs would take longer.He hurriedly chopped at the plaster and plastic, using both arms now.Thank goodness the bone had healed quick enough that he wasn't suffering much muscle failure in his other arm.He cut through one of the casts in fifteen minutes.His knife was getting duller now.He started on the third, and ran into some snags as his knife grew just about too dull for anything other than cutting butter.Swearing, he stabbed at it, not caring that he was using a lot of energy.The sense of danger was growing by the second.He finally cut through the last strands of plastic.Twenty-five minutes had passed, a whole ten minutes longer than it had taken to cut through the other.

Wufei looked at the clock again.Just ten minutes before the nurse came.He stopped to think about how he was making one of the most foolish decisions of his life, but the growing sense of doom was driving him to make rash decisions.He didn't think about dying, just about the sense of dread radiating from Quatre.He now realized who it was from, as well—what was going on?Shaking his head, he jerked the IV from his wrist, tying a piece of cloth around the wound he'd just inadvertently created on his wrist.He stood, his legs wobbly, and the room spun.He'd heard the doctors—he really shouldn't be up for a couple of more days, possibly even half a week.

Suddenly a feeling of intense panic washed over the boy, then all was still.That wasn't good.He quickly ran over to the closet where they'd put his clothes.He looked at the Preventers uniform, then changed his mind and grabbed his blue tank top and white pants that he'd worn so frequently during the war.He pulled the clothes on quickly, grabbing his katana from the closet as well.Last of all, he worked a brush Duo had left behind through his hair, then tied it into his familiar ponytail.Looking back over to the closet, he decided that he'd come back for the uniform…if he could.

Silently, he opened the door to the room, glancing up and down the hall.Nobody.He ran out and darted up the hall, stopping frequently and looking back and forth.The hospital was eerily—empty.He made his way down several levels until he could see the front doors.Escape was in sight.

Just then he heard a shout and saw orderlies rushing towards him.He cursed in Chinese—then darted for the door.He was faster than they expected, obviously, because he heard several surprised shouts.

He darted through the first set of doors—which were automatic—when they opened, then slammed into the set of push-to-open doors.They opened and he was out, but still not out of danger.He looked around briefly, then spotted a motorcycle parked nearby.Checking the license plate, he promised himself that he'd pay the owner back for their vehicle, then hotwired the thing with amazing speed.The orderlies had stopped, hushed, near the doors, and he took this to his advantage, riding out of the parking lot and away from the hospital, and towards the safe house, as fast as he possibly could.

--Field outside Safe House 023E (same time)

Draco turned to the technician."It's you!" he said urgently.

"There's no time for this." The technician warned him."It's imperative we save the pilots."

"I understand." Draco said, then watched as the other man activated the beam pike, and used the non-bladed end to flip the Gundams over.He then turned it around and began soldering through the cockpit doors.Draco watched, afraid to look—how did he know just how low to go to cut the Gundanium, but not the pilot?

Alternatively, what if he didn't—and they pulled the pilots out in pieces?However, his fears were abated when the tech pried open the cockpit door of Sandrock, the cut viewscreens still crackling around the edges.Draco leapt out of his mobile suit, running over and pulling the blonde boy out.Aside from bruises, and unconsciousness, the Arabian pilot looked fine.He looked over at the technician again, who was now working on cutting open Heavyarms.

He hoped that they'd get the pilots out in time.The very thought of Quatre with the metallic silver hair and soulless blue 'machine eyes' sent shivers down his spine.None of the boys deserved that.

Just then he heard the roar of a small engine, and looked over to see—he gasped.That Chinese boy had been thrown, battered, bruised, and had to have broken several limbs, and yet here he was, running across the field like a madman towards the three downed Gundams.

He heard the stomach-churning screech of metal as the technician pried open Heavyarms' hatch, then the Chinese pilot was upon him.

"What have you done to Quatre?" Wufei snapped, looking down at the Arabian pilot, who was now propped up against one of Sandrock's legs.

"We didn't do anything!It was the scientists…" Draco began helplessly.Swallowing at Wufei's vicious glare, he explained the whole story.Wufei looked at the silver suit in new respect as it sliced through the hatch of Deathscythe.

"Maxwell is going to kill him for doing that to his Gundam." Wufei mused, almost cheerfully.

"Hopefully he'll just wait until after this is all over with." Draco replied, in a half joking tone.

The creaking sound of torn metal sounded as the hatch to Deathscythe popped open.Both pilots looked over, but Wufei looked down when he heard a slight mutter.Sure enough, Quatre was opening his eyes.

Wufei kneeled next to the boy."Quatre?"  
Quatre opened his eyes, their ocean-colored depths muddled and confused.Once he saw Wufei, though, his eyes sprung open."Wufei!" he said urgently."You weren't supposed to be out of the hospital for at least a few more days!What happened?"

"We'll have to discuss that later," Wufei said hastily."Right now we need to come up with a plan to destroy that laboratory, as well as find another mode of transportation for you, Trowa, and Maxwell."

Quatre looked up at Sandrock."Did those sabotaged bombs really do that much damage?We repaired his mobile suit without much problem." Quatre stated, nodding towards Draco.

Wufei hesitated."They had to slice open the hatch to get you out.It'd take a while to get enough Gundanium to patch the hatches, plus all the necessary components for the damaged viewscreens and computers."

Quatre swore.Wufei's eyes widened.He'd never imagined hearing some of those particular obscenities coming from Quatre's mouth.

"Wait…" Quatre said, focusing on another thing he'd heard Wufei say."What laboratory?"

Draco looked over at Heavyarms."Let's wait until he wakes up, then I'll tell both of you."

"Oh no…Trowa!" Quatre said, following his gaze.He tried to stand, but fell back."Wufei, is he okay?"  
"I'll go see." Wufei said, springing over Sandrock quickly, then running across the field to Heavyarms and peeking into the cockpit.Trowa was still strapped in and sported bruises, as Quatre had, plus a scratch down one side of his face, but was otherwise okay.Wufei unstrapped the taller pilot and pulled him out of the cockpit, being careful of the torn metal edges around him.As soon as Trowa's face met fresh air, he started to mumble.Wufei pulled him out of the cockpit and put him down next to Heavyarms, then knelt nearby, waiting for him to awaken.

Trowa's eyes opened not much later, and the first thing he focused on was Wufei."Wufei?" Trowa blinked once, then focused on a totally different thing than Wufei's being there."Is Quatre okay?"

"Quatre's fine." Wufei said.He helped Trowa up, then guided him over to Sandrock.Trowa looked happy to see that Quatre was in one piece, and Wufei thoughtfully put him next to Quatre, then chose a seat next to Draco for himself.

"It's like this." Draco began.He explained about the laboratory and their projects.Quatre's eyes grew wider and wider, while Trowa just retreated further and further into himself, as if thinking.

All four looked aside suddenly as the silver suit spun, as if facing something, then jabbed viciously with its pike.The air rippled and suddenly a green and white mobile suit appeared from nowhere.

Wufei cursed in Chinese, and Trowa tightened his grip on Quatre's arm.As Wufei ran for the hangar to activate Altron, Quatre followed the boy's path, and saw Deathscythe, the hatch open, but Duo nowhere around.

"Duo!" Quatre shouted, as the green and white suit moved in that direction.

To be continued…

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Author's Notes : I took horrible liberties with many things in this chapter, such as Wufei escaping from the hospital. o.o;;Please forgive me!I know it might kill him normally, but let's just assume they have better healing technology…

On another note, there will probably be one more chapter, the last, plus an Epilogue.

Will Duo get smashed?Abducted?Whatever happened to Heero?Find out next time…

(I love reviews!If you've got a spare minute please do so!I read every one. ^.^)


	7. Chapter 7

The Sniper Project

The Sniper Project

Chapter Number : 7

By : Shadow~Of~Shadows

Disclaimer : While trying to purchase a Gundam Wing DVD at Sam Goody, I pleaded with them to please stock ultimate control over Gundam Wing and all characters therein.I was promptly escorted out of the store…meanies.Needless to say, I don't own GW!

Warnings : Shounen-ai, violence, language, slight OOC and AU.

Author's Notes : Here you go, the last chapter.Many, MANY thanks to everybody for reviewing, and I'll put an epilogue up as well.

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From here, it continues…

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--Field outside Safe House 023E

Quatre screamed as the green, white, and orange mobile suit moved towards Deathscythe Hell.His scream turned into a choked gasp as the enemy suit pulled out a beam saber, then a pleading gasp as it raised the weapon.It was all over, however, as soon as the suit sliced through Deathscythe's midsection.If Duo had been alive, he wasn't now.

"No…Duo…no…please…" Quatre whispered, even as Deathscythe half-exploded, throwing shrapnel for a good distance.Trowa bore a look of pure shock, and Draco's face was torn by sadness and anger.Just then Altron stepped out of the hangar.It paused for a second, and Quatre could almost imagine Wufei's face.He could have predicted what happened next—Altron was THROWN forward by a severe blast of thrusters and slammed its trident deep into the back of the other mobile suit.There was a crackle of electricity and the hatch opened.A young girl with silver hair and bright blue eyes leapt out, running quickly away from the mobile suit as it exploded.Quatre noticed.

"Quick!Catch her before she gets away!" he shouted urgently.Trowa looked over, but then noticed that Altron was moving.The dragon fangs slammed into the ground in front of the girl and behind her, with remarkable precision.She froze, and when she tried to move to the side, the fangs shook ominously.Her only remaining choice was to stand still.

The others rushed over, and Draco grabbed the girl, roughly restraining her.Eyes wide, she looked on, as if totally in shock about everything she saw.Which, Quatre reflected quietly to himself, she just might be.

"Rusted eyes." She said, looking at Draco."Rusted…eyes.Rusted eyes."

Just then, a blast of thrusters caused them to turn.The girl, surprisingly, held completely still in Draco's grip.The others watched as Wing Zero flew out of the hangar and away.

"Duo?" Quatre gasped.He turned to Trowa, but Trowa, sensibly, had already returned to the task at hand.

"What's she talking about?" Trowa asked quietly.

"My eyes.You see, machine projects have blue eyes, like hers.If you're created a machine project but your program fails, your eyes 'rust', and become reddish-brown, like mine." Draco explained.He turned his face towards them and they saw that, indeed, his eyes were a rusted color.

A dull thud rocked the ground, and they all turned to see the silver suit standing behind them.The hatch opened and the man that had warned them about the weapons sabotage—just a bit too late—leapt out.He swept his long bangs out of his eyes and looked at each of them in turn.

"You'll do.We need to attack the laboratory.We'll make a plan first, of course, but we should leave as soon as possible." He told them, calmly and simply.

"But there are only three of us!" Quatre said. "And Duo, but we don't know where he went to!"

"Three will do.You've also got Draco and me. And if your friend catches up to us he's welcome to join us." He told the blonde boy.He turned to Draco."Restrain her and secure her in the prisoner compartment of your mobile suit.We've got to leave as soon as possible."

Trowa spoke up."But how will Quatre and I get there?Our Gundams are, at the moment, unusable, to say the least."

"Do you have a car, or a truck?" Draco asked.

"A truck," Quatre informed him.

"Ride in it.We need somebody to sneak in the front entrance anyway and distract them—you two will do quite nicely.Now, as for a plan…" Draco started, looking at them all in turn.As they added their bits, Wufei leapt out of his Gundam and started talking as well.Soon, they'd come up with a plan—and they were ready to storm the laboratory.

--Secret Laboratory (A bit later)

Quatre nervously ran his fingers over the door handle of the truck."Trowa?Are you sure this will work?"

Trowa reached over and put his hand on the blond boy's shoulder, offering him silent reassurance and comfort.After a second of staring into each other's eyes, Quatre sighed and gripped the door handle in his hand.

"Okay then.Let's get this going."

The boys got out of the truck and gathered backpacks from the bed.Slinging the packs on their backs—in reality, they contained special explosives and backup weapons, not books or other items—the two readied their other weapons for immediate use, then walked towards the laboratory.They reached the doors and Quatre hit the intercom button, which was just where Draco had said it would be.

"Yes?" a harsh voice spat at them.

"Delivery of chemicals for Dr. Meitour."Trowa said calmly."You'll find it _clearly _marked on your register."

A quick ruffling of papers could be heard through the intercom, then the voice spat back at them, almost as if warning them against insolence."Fine.But don't waste time and don't hang about." The doors slid open.

Trowa and Quatre stepped through the doors, and began the trek to their destination.

On the other side of the base, Draco and the tech, who'd asked to be called Tooi, slipped into the hangar.They looked around quickly, and then climbed up the side of one of the MS there.Reaching the shoulders, they hunched down as a guard made his rounds.Pulling out a pistol, Tooi aimed and hit the guard in the back of the head with a perfectly aimed, silenced shot.Turning to Draco, the man said a simple phrase.

"Come on." 

With that, they slipped back down the sides of the MS and started making their way through the tunnels.

Meanwhile, in the other part of the labs, Quatre and Trowa walked past rooms filled with sickening sights.Children, just like the strange girl, with silver hair and bright blue eyes, strangely similar, all blank eyed, as if they had no souls.Some were practicing fighting, but they moved as if they were robots—there was none of the soul striking grace that they saw in Wufei's fighting.Quatre shivered.

Trowa compared a piece of paper from his pocket to a nameplate next to a door, and then knocked at it.

A scientist—the one Draco had told them about—opened the door.  
"Yes?" he asked, a bit harshly.

"Are you Dr. Meitour, sir?" Quatre asked, politely.

The scientist nodded. "That would be correct.Who are you?"

"We've been enlisted by the Roberts Chemical Corp to bring you some chemicals you ordered, sir." Quatre replied.

"Oh!You're the two from Roberts, eh?Well, come in then." The scientist stepped back, opening the door wider.The two boys stepped in and looked around slightly.

The other man led them over to a table."Set the chemicals out here, I'll be in the back if you need me." With a slight nod towards them, he walked off.

Quatre pulled out what looked like a box of chemicals.Reaching two fingertips into a break in the cardboard, he pressed a button inside what was actually a dual contact device and explosive.

Trowa began pulling similar boxes out of his backpack, and Quatre the same.Stacking them neatly, they turned to leave, but they suddenly couldn't walk any further…

"Ha ha, think you're gonna get me with something as stupid and obvious as that?" Dr. Meitour asked from behind them.

Quatre froze, his eyes widening, as he pressed at the air…force field…?…with his hands.It remained solid.

From behind them, the scientist smirked."Let's see how well you do against about twenty of my creations." He said.Suddenly, the room filled with silver haired, blue-eyed teenagers…all holding weapons.

Spinning, Trowa pulled a pistol from its concealed place underneath his jacket and fired.Once, twice, hitting someone with each bullet and dropping them, but two more people seemed to take their place.Pulling his own weapon out, Quatre began shooting as well, and as the projects started to return fire, the boys had a terrible feeling that they were doomed.

The battle looked impossible against the two boys, who were taking hits right and left even as they continued to drop enemies like mad.Then, three more figures joined the fray, two expected, one not.

Draco and Tooi leapt from a concealed entrance at the side of the lab and opened fire, drawing projects towards them, and then dispatching them quickly.The third figure, one dressed all in black, dropped from the ceiling and opened fire, shooting wildly, and hitting much of the time.Soon enough, the projects appeared to be falling back, and the scientist looked scared.Draco and Quatre finished off the last of them as Trowa slumped towards the ground.Duo mysteriously vanished once there appeared to be no more threat, even as Tooi started towards the scientist.

"Got anything to say for yourself, Meitour?" the silver haired man asked the scientist threateningly.

"I've got force fields.You can't break those." The scientist said with forced calm.

"Watch me." Tooi hissed.He leapt forward, clawing at something invisible—even as the scientist shot him once, twice—he was through—the scientist shot him again—

Then Tooi pointed his gun at Meitour's head, and pulled the trigger.

The two men fell, together, hopelessly bloody, both obviously dead.

And then…it was all over.

Draco tossed one of Quatre's arms over his shoulders, then went over and did the same for Trowa, on his other side.He looked back at Tooi.

"Tooi…I'm sorry I couldn't get you out of here before it blew…but rest in peace.We'll always remember you.Keep that in mind."

With that, Draco darted out of the base. Bypassing his own mobile suit, he went for Trowa and Quatre's truck.Mindful of their injuries, he put them carefully in the seats, grateful that the truck was an extended cab.As he started to drive away, he contacted Wufei on his pocket communicator.

"Everything's in order, you can go ahead and destroy the base now."

"Roger tha-" Wufei started, when another voice broke over his comm.

"No, I've got it." Wufei looked around, and saw Wing Zero in the sky, aiming the rifle at the lab.In a flash of golden fire, the base was demolished, all as Wufei stared in confusion.

"Duo?"

"Slipped again, Wufei.Starting to call me by my first name, now are you?" Duo replied over the communit, and then started to fly away.

"Maxwell!Where are you going?" Wufei ordered.

"Oh, home." Duo said blankly.

Wufei noticed another blinking light on his panels, so he tapped the corresponding button.Une's face came on screen."Wufei!A Preventers laboratory in your area has been destroyed!We need you to go take a look at it."

Wufei looked down at the labs with growing comprehension and fear on his face, and then set down nearby to start the conversation with Une.This would take a while.

--Hospital, Trowa and Quatre's Room (a few hours later)

Wufei walked into Trowa and Quatre's room.The two pilots were groggy from surgery but looked up when he came in.Quatre managed a feeble grin.

"Hi…Wufei…" he said, before slumping back.

"Don't overexert yourself on my account, Quatre." Wufei said quietly."I just came to tell you that Draco and his sister are going to be joining the Preventers."

"That's great!" Quatre said, coughing a bit."I'm sorry I can't be more enthusiastic…"

"Don't worry about it." Wufei assured him."Also…Duo hasn't turned up."

Quatre's expression faded from happiness to worry."Where could he be?"

"Well…I just have this feeling he'll turn up soon." Wufei said."Don't worry about him."Wufei looked at the clock."Well, I'm going to go now.I'll come back and visit you again tomorrow."

"All right." Quatre said, watching Wufei as he left.

--Hospital, Heero's Room (about the same time)

Duo sat down in the chair next to Heero's bed and laced the fingers of his right hand with the fingers of Heero's left.

"I hope you don't mind my borrowing your Gundam, Heero." Duo said quietly.Heero remained still, remained silent.

Duo went on, telling Heero about the fight, and other things, and when he reached the end, paused.

Well, he'd fulfilled what he'd said to Wufei.

_It's just for me, home is a person, not a place._

_ _

--Preventers HQ (about the same time)

"I can't believe this." Une said, talking to Zechs through the long-distance comm. link.Behind the blonde man, an impressive panoramic of Mars was visible through the windows.Red dust blew through the scene periodically.

"Well, it just seems something got past our guard, that's all." Zechs told her."Take steps to make sure the same thing doesn't happen again.The Gundam Pilots are too valuable to waste."

"They may not be pilots anymore, you know." She told him quietly."Deathscythe Hell destroyed, and Sandrock and Heavyarms need major repairs."

"Then maybe it's time for the Gundams to sleep." He replied, then seemed to listen for something."Noin's calling.I'll call you back when we get done with this new unit."

"All right." Une said, turning off the comm. unit."We'll watch out for you, Gundam Pilots.This won't happen again."

And so it ended.The scientist was killed, and new Preventers were found.But were all the remnants of his research truly destroyed?Possibly.Then again…

-~-

And here…it ends ?

-~-

So what happens?Is there a party, do the Gundams all get detonated, or what?And what about that silver haired girl?Find out in the Epilogue, coming soon!

Okay, well, that ending wasn't the best, I have to admit.However, there's still the epilogue.Which means it isn't TOTALLY over.Heh, stick around, and sorry this was so short.

I live on reviews.I'd love to get one from you.(Flames are a different story.)

~Shadow =^_^=


	8. Epilogue

The Sniper Project

The Sniper Project

Epilogue

By : Shadow~Of~Shadows

Disclaimer : While trying to purchase a Gundam Wing DVD at Sam Goody, I pleaded with them to please stock ultimate control over Gundam Wing and all characters therein.I was promptly escorted out of the store…meanies.Needless to say, I don't own GW!

Author's Notes : Oh gee it's over!Wow!Read additional notes after the Epilogue for more info.

-~-

One year later…

-~-

"Hurry it up already!I'm getting tired of just sitting here!Heero's waiting!" Duo complained from the front seat of the car.

Trowa, loading luggage into the trunk, looked up as he closed the trunk, then walked around and took his place in the driver's seat.Instead of turning the car on, however, he turned to gaze at the braided pilot."Give me one good reason why I should hurry."

"Quatre."

The car left without further hesitation.

-~-

Quatre pulled aside the curtain on the front window and glanced out at the driveway.Heero, seated behind him, snorted at the motion.Quatre half turned, the curtain dropping back over the window with a forlorn swish.

"Quatre, they'll get here sooner or later.Looking out the window isn't going to make them come any faster." The prussian eyed pilot assured his friend, turning off the TV as he did so. Some of the annoying habits Duo had displayed much of the time on previous trips had worn off on him during his convalescence, Quatre noted.With a sigh, the blonde boy turned unconsciously towards the curtain.

"Don't." Heero told him sternly.He looked at the clock, and then nodded towards the kitchen."Let's do something while we wait, like make lunch."

"A-all right." Quatre said hesitantly.

-~-

"Faster!FASTER, Trowa! I'm SURE this thing can go faster than it's going!" Duo said impatiently.

"Duo, it isn't a Gundam.The speed limit is 75, and we're already going about 7 miles per hour over that.So it's better to NOT go any faster.After all, a cop won't grant you a favor just because you're the God of Death." Trowa said, with something resembling a smirk.

"Boy, when you talk you talk." Duo said, settling into his seat with a sigh.

Trowa pointed at a sign."Look, it's only twenty-three miles to Lubbock.Surely you can wait THAT long." Trowa said, smirking ever so slightly.

"It's torture, that's what it is, TORTURE!" Duo said agitatedly.

-~-

Quatre had successfully constructed a beautiful salad, which had continued to gain toppings even after it was at the point of running over the bowl by the time Heero finally stopped him.

"That's enough." The Japanese pilot told the small blonde sternly, pulling some chicken out of the oven as he did so.Quatre, a year ago, would have laughed at the very thought of Heero Yuy being domestic, yet here he was, with potholders, poking chicken legs and wiping off a table.The very thought boggled the mind.

Just then, an urgent pounding on the door sounded, broken by shouting, the words not intelligible but the tone of voice recognizable.

"It's-"

Before he finished the phrase, Heero had all but thrown the potholders down and run into the other room, even as Quatre rescued a piece of chicken on the verge of falling.He heard the door slam open and more conversation start, Duo's happy squeal and the deeper tones of Heero's voice, then a brief splash of conversation as the kitchen door opened.

"Got lost in the ruins of this old university, took us forever to find this place.Sorry we were late but we…" the door swung shut again, Trowa leaning against it and smiling at Quatre.

"Trowa!" Quatre said.Ever the gentleman, he wiped his hands off before running to hug his boyfriend."Trowa!It's really you!It feels like it's been years…"

"Only about eight months, but that's enough." Trowa said.He jerked his head towards the living room."Those two are quite the show-offs."

Quatre blushed."Well, it's pretty private in here…"

Trowa nodded and just as he moved to kiss Quatre, the door slammed into both, knocking them over. 

"Oops!" Duo said as he walked in, seeing both boys sprawled on the floor.He laughed madly."Was I interrupting?" moving over to the stove, the boy poked a piece of chicken, then favored it a grin.

"Hello Duo," Quatre said, a bit breathlessly.After all, he'd been knocked over and fallen on…

Duo heard Quatre's tone of voice and cackled madly."Ooh, I WAS interrupting!On a kitchen floor? Quatre, I somehow expected this of you."

Quatre blushed bright red, a red to match the color of the tomatoes in the salad."N-no Duo, I think you're mistaken, you see we were just-"

"It's always 'we were just.'" Duo said, with a wicked grin."Did you know that?'We were just examining the carpet.'" He snorted."That's one of my favorites you know."

By this time Quatre was blushing madly and opening and closing his mouth as if trying to say something, but not quite managing to get the words out.

"Chill, Q-man." Duo said.He poked at something in the salad."Are we gonna EAT this?"

"Duo!That's my salad!" Quatre said.Duo pulled his finger out of the lettuce with the look of a guilty young child pasted across his features.

All three turned to look as Heero walked in.Levitating towards the braided boy instantly, Heero voiced a simple question.

"Well, shall we eat?"

-~-

After the lunch, the boys returned to the living room and sat.Quatre looked at Trowa and Duo, then smiled.

Duo's voice broke the silence. "So what happened to that dude and his sister?"

"Draco and Lyra?" Quatre provided innocently."Well, they joined a terraforming team.They didn't want to overburden the Preventers, they said."

Duo nodded."No offense to them, I'm sure they're REALLY nice people—but they were kinda scary.Just thinking about them.They were part machine.I used to joke that Heero was, but after seeing THEM, I'm not gonna joke anymore."

Quatre nodded solemnly, then smiled."Well, Wufei should be back any day now!Then we'll all be together again!"

Duo looked around at the others and nodded.After so long, it'd be nice to have all five together again, even if just for a short time.Being with the others felt like being with family.

Duo wouldn't trade that feeling for anything in the world.

-~-

Additional Author's Notes : Ok, this wasn't the best.Sorry about the shortness of the chapters and such.Anyway, a few notes:

I don't know what this was inspired by, really.Also, I have the g-boys in what remains of Texas at the end—so shoot me.I needed somewhere for them to have a house and that seemed as good a place as any.Also—ruins of an old university?No offence meant to Techies!If it consoles you any, point at a random building and say, "Whoa, cool, that was destroyed by OZ-zies!"If you really have to do that to console yourself thought—well, I'm not going to say anything.

Also, Trowa said the speed limit is 75—I'm well aware it's 70 (ok, at least here anyway.) I'm just saying they raised it.

Again, MANY MANY thanks for ALL of your reviews, I read every one and cherish them all.As of now, there is NO sequel planned, and I doubt I'll get enough feedback for one.So be happy with this and other fics I'm going to work on.

Sayonara,

~Shadow =^_^=

(Note and shameless plug: you can get advance updates on further fics, and find fics when FFN is down, at my website, which you can reach through my author page.)


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